Valencia are in no position to get rid of quality defenders but they couldn't throw Rami at us fast enough.

Those who want him in the side still see him as the kid who did so well for 4 months in 2012. That El-Sha is burned on their brain and they believe in him. His utter failure prior and since is literally erased and they just keep hoping. When he puts in another rubbish display they are more forgiving of him than they would be of others because 'he's the bright young hope of Milan ™'.



I...didn't? I just said I'm giving him Honda time. What are you arguing with?

I honestly don't see why SES should start. He's very ineffective and out of shape. What I don't get is why both SES and Honda don't get a much freer SS role behind the static Torres/Pazzo.

About the two; I think it's obvious that our team has a problem with classic strikers. Matri, Pazzini, to an extent Balo and now (it seems so far) Torres all failed playing this position. So we must not put the blame solely on Pazzini or Torres.

He shouldn't. But we need a SS in there, and him and Menez are the only ones we have. Obviously I'd pick Menez.

I wish Pippo would give the 4-3-1-2 a try. We don't have the appropriate wingers for 4-3-3 or even 4-2-3-1 for that matter. SES is poor, Honda is not a winger, and Bonaventura is much more effective in midfield. Only Menez can play there.

No MvG?

What makes you have faith in MvG?

I'm fine with either him or Poli.



Change, Fillipo. We need to try every option available.

His quality of passing, composure and vision during the very brief 30 minute cameo he's had.

That and the fact that absolutely every Chelsea fan I know, and I know a lot, has raved endlessly about him.

Rami was very solid last season, and these issues you're mentioning weren't there. He needs to get back into form yes, and I trust him more than Zapata

As for Zapata, he did it in pre-season vs Valencia (they scored off it), did it once against Lazio and did it trice over on Sunday, and I can mention many more that happened over the course of his time with us, the most clear one still in my mind was the one against Barca last season when we were ahead and doing well and Zapata passes it to no one, Busquets recovered the ball, passed it to Messi and scored


That had nothing to do with his abilities as a footballer, he had issues with the coach and was frozen out

Yes, he wasn't bad last season, but he still had those flaws I mentioned. Look at Diego Costa's goals against us and see how he completely lost him. Rami isn't very brilliant tactically, whereas Zapata is very smart and has the skills to complement his awareness. Sure, his passing does annoy me, but if he maintains a high level of defending then I don't mind. There are other things I value in a defender than his passing abilities.

Han's pro-Rami anti-Zapata stance is tedious.

I advise you to watch some of the earlier games last season under Allegri (most importantly the goals we conceded) to see how great Zapata's positioning is. He's just as culpable at time of making errors. His positional awareness is just as average as Rami's


I'm not pro or anti anyone in this case. I just trust Rami more. Simple as that

Perfect period you chose for as an example. Everyone was making mistakes back then, we were a mess.

Look, I'm not saying Zapata is the next Thiago Silva. He's prone to poor performances like everyone else in this team. But compared to Bonera and Rami, I trust him more. Everything I said earlier (about his speed, positioning, anticipation etc.), I have no doubt in my mind about any of that. You think differently, fine by me. Can we just drop this now?

I'm more inclined to agree with han on this. I don't think Zapata is necessarily an awful player, but he's just an athlete to me. The mental side of his game is lacking.

Yep, this.

I was about to add that his lack of positional sense at times is covered over because of his speed so he doesn't find it as difficult to recover.

@x-off best way to decide that is to see who Pippo plays for the next few games and how they perform.

For me it comes down to who the bigger liability is in our defence, and for me Zapata is that. Therefore Rami is mostly a lesser of 2 evils for me.

Imo, we shouldn't even be having this discussion as without a shadow of doubt in my mind, our 2 best CBs are Alex and Mexes, but Mexes seems to be completely exiled from the squad for some reason unknown to us, so the second best choice for me is Rami

Me and X V Han and Kurt.

We want the blue corner.

That looks more like the twilight zone as that combo NEVER happens here

Ha, fair point!

Pippo talking about 3 to 4 changes for the game tonight.

I spy with my little eye - BONERA!!!!!!