Football Italia

One thing worries me: Unless Ivanovic says, like R10, "I want Milan and nobody else" I don't see us getting him. We just aren't willing to spend the money to compete.

That article's got an interesting take on things. Today's article on tuttomercatoweb (they reported that Milan were looking at Ivanovic a couple of weeks ago too) says that Milan's offer is bigger than Juve's.

It depends on how badly management wants him. If they do, they'll get him.

And Juventus has lost out on numerous bids this transfer-season and their transfers have been very average.

Unfortunately our management never seem desperate, R10 seems to be about the only person they've really good out of their way to get. Even that took years.

They've been okay, I think they over paid for Amauri, but Olly and Poulsen own. Me loves them both.

Perhaps you have a point, but did they seem utterly desperate to get two young Uruguayans? I think we'll get a defender. Maybe Ivanovic. Maybe Alex Silva. Who knows it could be a surprise.

There is pressure on management to do something.

I understand you're a Villa fan... I don't mean any disrespect to Mellberg, but he's not a top quality player. Poulsen... is rubbish though and these feelings go back several years. He is simply no good.

I think I'm relying more of hope of us getting a new CB, rather than having faith that we'll get it done. To be honest, even if we don't it's not the end of the World. The less CBs we have, the more time Bonera will get, and I like this guy, just unfortunate he's had to play at RB alot.

Poulsen? I really rate him, I've always liked him.. though I can understand why Milan, Milanfans and mainly Gattuso may share different feelings. I can't say for Mellberg, I don't know how he'll fare in a team with good defenders around him where he doesn't have to be the leader, we'll have to see.

You'd want Bonera in center back? That seems to work... but we still need to get another defender because Nesta's absence could hurt us. I think it is imperative for our team to have depth in the back. Our midfield, hands down, is one of the best in Italy (that's my belief)... I did hear Ronaldinho was lacking a bit of pace against Belgium, but he did some nice tricks... he should regain pace once he gets back into it. He hasn't played a competitive match like that in a while... he should do better the next few games...

Anyways...

Poulsen in my eyes, skills wise, was never a good player. And maybe I'm blinded by the way Rino may feel towards him...

^^ For what it's worth, Kurt, the Italian Zebra fans of my acquaintance seem to think Mellberg will be challenging Legrottaglie for a starting spot. I'll also add that the girls like what they're referring to as the 'Viking look'.

That's good to hear.

He will add that much needed facial hair that the Juve team was lacking last season.

The joke of this is that Juventus will still go in the transfer market and open their wallet.

Milan with the oldest and probably weakest defense will probably not even do anything. We are good as is and we will not be signing anyone.

Again theres this assumption that just because we have Ronaldinho and Flamini we are somehow guaranteed to win it all. With Inter they stronger than last season and Juventus, Roma, and Fiorentina are all stronger. So I am excited to see the new line-up but I don't much to really how a couple players can turn this team around.

How is our defense any weaker than their defense? If anything, their defense is A JOKE. They won't sign anyone. Secco is too retarded to do that. We all know that. We bought a whole lot more than just Ronaldinho and Flamini. We bought more than Inter, Juventus, Roma and Fiorentina.

I wonder though... these players can give us glory. It's ridiculous to say otherwise. And our defense age wise, is similar to Juventus and Inter. Other than Maldini...

Who are you to say we won't do anything? We already signed Zambrotta... Inter has a bigger defensive crisis than we do.

We've had one of the most active transfer seasons in the Serie A, hands down. We signed player,s while Roma, Juventus and Inter failed. Inter failed to sign Lampard and Quaresma (at this point). Roma looks like it is failing to sign Baptista and every other forward they wanted including Mutu. Roma has lost players. Inter has only signed Muntari and Mancini. Juventus only mentionable signing is Amauri (and I heard he got injured). Juventus has a defense, besides Chiellini, similar to that of a Serie B team. If their attack lets up, and for a while last season it did, they could be in serious trouble. They have some players in their midfielder older than most of our defenders.

We've had a decent summer for transfers, but in terms of why the players have been bought in, ours isn't necessarily that good. Inter have bought in Mancini for the first team, and he's been great for a few years now, and Muntari will be a very good squad player. Mellberg and Poulsen will be very good squad players for Juve, Amouri will be a decent guy to roatate with the other strikers. Flamini is Milans best buy, as he's going to be good as a starter. But R10 and Zambrotta? We've bought these guys in as first team players, there's no doubt about that.. but what exactly has either of them done since summer '06? Even considering the careers they've had so far, they both have alot to prove this season, their reputation is going down badly.

I look it at differently. We've had a far better transfer season than Inter. Muntari is too lazy in my eyes and not technically skilled enough. Mellberg and Poulsen are simply squad players. Juve really lacks class defenders... the only great one is Chiellini. What I'd do to see Chiellini play at Milan... we've got a few great players from Juve in the past... one we happen to know very well

Flamini is great, Ronaldinho is on the up-swing... Zambrotta was in a slump at Barcelona and I'm sure he can regain what he once had. His reputation is NOT going down badly. In fact Zambrotta had a notable Euro Cup... he did make a mistake against Romania, but overall he put in solid performances. Ronaldinho was pretty good on the field against Belgium. But to say their reputations are going down... no. I can't agree with that.

Our transfer season included: Antonini, Abbiati (back on loan, and is one of my favorite keepers), Zambrotta (solid player), Flamini (great free transfer), Ronaldinho (he is world class and is no where past his peak), Viudez, Cardaccio.. and I don't even think we're done yet.

But to say our transfer season isn't better...

I don't get how Mancini is better than Ronaldinho. That's not possible. Mancini is not even capped by the Brazilian national team anymore... and if I had a choice of the two, I'd definitely pick Ronaldinho.

One other thing about Ronaldinho. He has never had any major injuries in his career. He has a thin build. And he appears to be very happy with Milan. How is this not a great first class transfer?

I agree. Mancini does not even come close to polishing Ronnie's boots. Mancini is a player who struck me as being extremely moody and lazy who shows an occasional flash of brilliance and then goes to sulk in his own corner for the rest of the time. And he hardly puts any effort into the games. I think that as soon as Inter get their filthy hands on Quaresma, Mancini will not get any playing time with the first team.

And, initially, I had my doubts about Ronnie. But when I saw how emotional he got during his presentation and I saw him standing there like a little kid on his first visit to Disneyland trying to hold back tears, I knew that he is going to give it all to get back to that old form he had. He is happy at Milan and a happy Ronnie can only be a very good news. And with all the news about Ronnie and Pato developing a strong understanding on the Brazil training ground, I just can't wait to see the impact they have on SerieA.

We've had a very good transfer season. The best for quite a few years now. I am excited. If only we can get our hands on a good defender, it'll be the best ever

never seen him play.. is he as good as Vidic?

damn i like him.. he's a good cb.. (lets ignore the fact we trashed them before)

He's not as good as Vidic in my opinion. Vidic is under-rated by many. Considering Rio Ferdinand is utter ***** 50% of the time, he has to do alot on hiw own for United.

As for the Mancini thing.. international caps don't mean THAT much sometimes. There's a few NTs that pick themselves, so it doesn't really matter how well you play, you'll not stand much chance of getting into the first team, maybe just into the squad.

For me, last 2 years Mancini > last 2 years R10. But maybe he'll prove me wrong and do something this season, I hope he does!

Agree with the sentiment, but naughty word removed nonetheless.

^^

Nope Mancini has been pretty cr@p last season. It's why they weren't as keen on extending his contract as say Aquilani's.

Ronaldinho was bad last season, coz he didn't play much. I still if you compare contributions Ronaldinho will come out trumps.

But the issue here is Ivanovic. I don't think Juve have much of a chance if Milan do want to get Ivanovic. We'd probably exchange/sell Brocchi and Simic somewhere and get Ivanovic. But the question is, whether Ivanovic is much better than Kaladze.


Vidic? I think by himself he is mediocre. But with Ferdinand, they cover each other's deficiencies. Ferdinand's 'flashiness' is compensated by Vidic's no-nonsense approach. And Vidic's rough edges are taken care of by Ferdinand.

Ivanovic is tall, and I think strong in the air. That's good. I like the idea of someone who can outpower opponents. But how much can he improve? And can he partner Maldini/Bonera if Nesta is injured? I haven't seen him play so

For one, Mancini gets roughly eight goals a season. That's pretty lousy for the position he's supposed to fill... and he played regularly. Ronaldinho only played 17 times last season and he scored eight times... that's a bad season for him. LOL. He still manages to score quite regularly even only playing less.

The season before that he scored 21 times. Ronaldinho by far is the better player compared to Mancini, and even if you take in the last season into account. Mancini is slow and lazy. They weren't very keen on renewing his contract.

I think Ivanovic will have more energy and I think he's great for his respective national team. He's quite tall indeed. I say we just go for a player with great potential so we can form him well. If we get a player already developed there is a chance he might not fit into Milan's system.

Okay anyways... I hope I won't get anybody mad with a double post... but there is some news on Ivanovic. It appears he has chosen Milan, over Juventus. A bit of a surprise and he has also asked if he could be transferred.

http://www.calciomercato.com/index.php?c=12&a=91246

BUT... Calciomercato released this statement. They can be reliable depending on their source.

"Il serbo ha chiesto al Chelsea di andare via e ha scelto i rossoneri. Ora si aspetta la risposta per il prestito. Missione a Londra per chiudere lunedì. (Gazzetta dello sport) "

--

Gazzetta is the source. This says Milan will try to close the deal at or by Monday on a loan deal.

We shall see. If this is the case, I'll be happy. It'll be important to shore up the defense. So far, when I've seen things like this, they have happened this transfer season unlike previous transfer seasons where rumors amounted to nothing. But again, we shall see.

Tuttomercatoweb (pro-Milan) has released something similar: http://www.tuttomercatoweb.com/index.php?a...d&id=117084

This basically states that Ivanovic is leaning towards Milan and that because of the communication open between Milan and Chelsea, any loan will favor Milan, not juve. Apparently we'll pay 2 million for the loan, and could buy him for a possible 12 million later on depending if this guy does well.

I hope this is true. That would, without any opposition among forum members, make this a 5 star transfer window right??

GOOOD

We shall see. At this point, I think he's the right person for our defense and I'd give it 4 out of 5 stars. Lacking one star because I'm not super familiar with him, but I hear he's one solid defender.

He's 24 years old, a tall 6'2" (1.88 m), and I hear he's good in the air... people can't really attack our defense for being too old. We'll have two defenders age 26 and 24. The thing about Ivanovic what I like a lot is how versatile he is and how he is consistent in different sections of the defense.

Edit: Guys I don't want to get your hopes up. Just stay modest. I feel when I stay modest things happen. When I hope too much, things backfire.

That link says absolutely nothing about open communication between Milan and Chelsea. What it does say is that Milan's been talking to Chelsea about him, not about Shevchenko. That link also doesn't indicate Ivanovic's preferences; it says that Ivanovic is currently in pole position for the rossoneri's reinforcement - ie, that he's top of Milan's list.

There's a new interview just on tuttomercatoweb with Vlado Borosan, a FIFA agent who works with Ivanovic's agent.

[I know Milan's interested in Ivanovic, but so far there's been no official contact. It's probable, given relations with chelsea, that the matter's being discussed directly with them. The boy's awaiting news on his future because he wants to play with a big club and not sit on the bench, a club like Milan would be good for him. A loan with right to buy would be the most likely and realistic solution: I've read that Juve offered 5 million, which is ridiculous because Chelsea bought him for 12 million in January. I could compare him to a taller Cordoba with the same power and being good with his head: he scores a lot of goals and is a complete player who could also play right back and for 2 years played at the highest level. I'm convinced he's among the top 5 players in Europe in his position, especially among the younger players. Inter and Juve have shown interest (Inter in the last window) but he wants to play. Whoever offers him the best solution for his career - a place in the squad - and good economic conditions, given that he's got a contract of 2.5 million a year, will have him.]

Sì, mi risulta che il Milan sia interessato ad Ivanovic, ma al momento nessuno ci ha ancora contattati ufficialmente": Vlado Borosan, agente FIFA protagonista dei trasferimenti di Zaccardo e Barzagli al Wolfsburg, e socio di Dejan Joksimovic, agente del difensore serbo del Chelsea, ha spiegato in esclusiva a Tuttomercatoweb.com la situazione del centrale, che piace molto ai Rossoneri. "E' probabile che avendo ottimi rapporti con il Chelsea, ne stiano discutendo direttamente prima con la società londinese: il ragazzo sta attendendo novità sul suo futuro, perchè vuole giocare in una grande società e non fare la riserva, quindi un club come il Milan certamente sarebbe gradito" ha spiegato Borosan: sulla possibile valutazione del giocatore, "la soluzione del prestito oneroso con diritto di riscatto sarebbe la più abbordabile e realistica: ho letto che alcuni scrivoni di 5 milioni offerti secondo loro dalla Juventus, sinceramente è una cosa ridicola, visto che il giocatore è stato pagato 12 milioni a gennaio". Curioso poi l'abbinamento fatto con un altro difensore: "Può somigliare ad un Cordoba più alto, con lo stesso scatto, la potenza, la bravura di testa: poi segna molti gol, è un giocatore completo che può fare anche il terzino destro e da due anni si esprime a livelli altissimi. Sono convinto che sia tra i primi 5 giocatori in Europa nel suo ruolo, specie tra i giovani". Al Milan dunque non resta che accaparrarselo, visto la corte delle altre due grandi italiane: "Piace a Juventus ed Inter (l'agente di Mancini, Giorgio De Giorgis, lo aveva trattato ai tempi del Lokomotiv, ndr), ma a lui interessa giocare: chi gli offrirà la miglior soluzione per la sua carriera, ovvero un posto in squadra, e condizioni vantaggiose economicamente, avendo un contratto importante intorno ai 2,5 milioni all'anno, lo avrà".

I've never seen him play. Will he be a notable improvement over Bonera?

a big one he is very gd and he could do gd with maldini and nesta

The first link does... however the second one does indicate Milan is interested and will talk to Chelsea about it.

Also as far as the other source is concerned, it's possible that Milan is talking directly with Chelsea right now. The source I mentioned says that Milan will want to close the deal by monday, so it is possibly that they haven't spoken with the player's agent yet.

His agent also made a good point that a loan with a right to buy is the best possible solution for both sides. Chelsea won't lose a ton of money and Milan won't have to spend 15 million or so to buy him.

I dont think he is better than Bonera. He does seem to be a good defender though

He has ZERO appearances for Chelsea since he joined them. I don't think this dude is the answer to our problems.

yeah but u have to look at wht chesea do to gd players such as sheva !!!! A.Cole !!! Anelka he played many games and he scored 2 goals !!! b4 he joined them he was one of the top scores in the epl

The reason he hasn't played is not ability based, but he was very unfit when he joined.

True but Ivanovic did not even appear in a single game. Anelka is not a man for a big club, he is overrated.


Another reason not to waste time on him.

Prove he's not worth it. He's one of the best defenders in his position and he was only out of form because of the way the game seasons were structured.

Chelsea has a surplus of defenders, and this guy is quite talented... and young too. He would help shore up our defense. Better him than Simic.

Why do you think he's one of the best in his position, Giancarlo?

This is judging on what I've heard of him before he joined Chelsea. He certainly was followed by several major teams, including Juventus and Real Madrid (if I recall properly). He's also has had some convincing performances with his respective national team.

i dunno if i posted this b4 but look at this comp he is gr8 and i also watched him live b4 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uqxZBQM4XkQ

He was fairly good in the U21s last summer - was named to team of the tournament, I think. And he did have a nice goal against Portugal (sorry, Portikins) in the Euro qualifying game in Lisbon. So he's good. But best in his position? Not so sure. I'm not even positive whether he's better as a centerback or a wingback.

For those who've seen Ivanovic play -- how would you compare him to Juve's Chiellini who is a player of similar age and experience?

i would say no doubt that chiellini is better.....but ivanovic is also a very gd player him and nesta would make a very strong combo

They dont have that many CBs(Carvalho,Terry,Alex). They even used Essien as CB instead of Ivanovic. Lack of match fitness is a poor excuse because he had the time to get in shape.

I can't prove that he is not worth it but u can't prove me wrong either.

i know this is way offtopic but Il Capitano where did u getur dp from?....and btw did u watch batman ?

At the risk of sounding even more off topic, what on God's good earth is that 'dp' thing?

loool display pic

Those were starters. They spent approximately 12 million Euros on him. He did have some issues with fitness, but he has been played. I stated my reasons why we should acquire him. And honestly, I think he would adapt better to Milan's team (that's only my opinion).

I think it's a little harsh to say that Ivanovic had the time to get in shape, because he didn't. He was bought by Chelsea in the Russian off-season, he was not in training - like players from all countries aren't in the off-season - and Chelsea bought him pretty out of the blue. Even if he was fit, I'm not sure a team doing well in both the league and Champions League would want to throw a player into the first team, especially as Carvalho and Terry both had good seasons. It comes down to a number of things, getting used to playing with certain keepers, how they like to receive the ball, etc.

and ben haim

thats 5 CB all of whom are class, thats alot considering carvalho and especially terry and guaranteed starters for most games.

essien was used as one 2 seasons ago when ivanovic wasnt around and when they had lack of depth then they went out and bought 3.

this is funny though, you are basing your opinion purely on 1 stat and i bet you've never seen this guy play which is the most important thing.

WOW i dint know this Alex was never owned by PSV, chelsea had him loaned out for 3 seasons!

dint know this...

Ben Haim has gone to Man City.


Yeah, due to those English work permit issues. I think Chesea currently have another player on loan at PSV for 3 years, some Brazillian guy.