Criteria Draft Final - Aldo vs NoPace

With all players playing at their peaks, who will win?

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RoadTrip

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Team Aldo

:devil: The new addition and coming in to see the team through the final and lift the trophy is none other than the captain fantastic Roy Keane! Marching from the front, thrwarting the opposition and taking the game by the scruff of it's neck, the all round powerhouse would be incredibly valuable to this team.

Another change to the formation and now it's a 4-3-3, but a flexible one at that. At the back we have probably the best left back ever in Paolo Maldini and probably the best right back in the PL Gary Neville guarding the flanks with the rock solid duo of Marcel Desailly and Jaap Stam towering in the middle. Maldini's insane reserves of stamina and energy will be ever so valuable in taking the ball out of defense effectively while being watertight at the back. He's got the pace, anticipation, inch perfect tackling, bravery and a 25 year career of shutting doors against the greatest of attack single handedly to take care of the little Argentine. As good as Messi is this is the toughest competition he'd ever face. If I'm facing a false 9, Desailly comfort in easily stepping out of the box specially with Big Jaap having his back will allow him to not let any roaming be a trouble. Again loads of energy, stamina, pace, work rate in the frenchman to follow his man around like a leech.

In midfield Roy Keane will be marshalling the defensive side, working in tandem with another defensive stalwart Simeone and plugging all gaps possible. With the CB duo behind them they'd make an incredible wall of defense tough to break for anyone. Both of them are well capable of taking the ball out of defense and would rotate the jobs of shielding the defense and bombing forward. Both tough as nails mentally, not shy of getting stuck in, absolutely in your face cnuts and will not allow a second of comfort to the opposition. Completing the trio is the talented Mario Basler bringing in his creativity, passing and technique to pass and move the ball around. Again no hollywood balls required, rather neat technique and simple but efficient and quick passing and movement, and that's what Basler brings.

Moving to the attack the trio is a devastating one. Rivaldo and Hagi the two trequartistas behind the legend of Ronaldo! Rivaldo will be working as a support striker off Ronaldo like they did for Brazil, roaming across the opposition defense, with his immense technique, amazing touch and control, an eye to thread the needle and being in dangerous positions to score the whole game, a class finisher capable of scoring the incredible. Hagi will be more involved in buildups and would on occasions drop deep to pull the strings as well as run the side. Him and Basler compliment each other as both are capable of playing centrally as well as out wide. They'd interchange often. Up front, Ronaldo, goal machine, magical close control and dribbling and blistering pace. There's no way to defense against him. Drop deep and he'd strike one from 25 yards, give space behind the defense and he's the best 1v1 scorer I've seen. Man mark him close and he'd bring forward his wide array of skills and tricks to beat his man, double mark him and he's well capable of playing others in, Hagi and Rivaldo both fantastic scorers themselves.

My attack would definitely be a big task for his defense. Silva and Aldair are solid names but Ronaldo's made a mug of all of them. Watch his performance in the UEFA Cup in 97-98 where he destroyed Alessandro Nesta, for example. At his prime Ronaldo was unstoppable, and this is not me throwing that word around, he was in every sense of the word, unstoppable. Makelele's a great DM but it's no secret he's limited, albeit great at what he does. My setup does not play to his strengths, rather his weaknesses. In Hagi, I have a very mobile AM who would not be easy to mark, which was Makelele's strength, rather Hagi who was comfortable out wide as much as he was in the middle would move around always making diagonal runs into spaces left behind the fullback and dragging the frenchman around, which is taking him out of his comfort zone. It's that swift movement and speed of the passing that would be tough to deal with. We would also have Rivaldo and Ronaldo dropping deep, as per their natural game, and the CB duo would certainly need help from midfield to contain their quality, and it puts a major pressure on Makelele and Schweinsteiger. There's a high level of dribbling among other things in there, my front three are tough to get off the ball, they like shrugging strong incoming tackles.

All in all there are two great attacks in this match, but I believe I have a significant advantage in defense as well as defensive midfield and I am better suited to contain him than he is to me.

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Team NoPace

Tactics:
-I won't play into his hands by attacking his defense through the middle, and I'll look to deny his counters, since he has a back 6 well set up to break up attacks and start counters. If he also plays a patient game, I have 3 attackers capable of winning a game with a hero run from deep with the ball or a long shot, whereas Ronaldo is his only dual threat that way farther from goal, with Hagi and Rivaldo both great shooters but lacking the dribbling penetration of Baggio/Messi/Cristiano.

Instead, it'll have to be a patient game and looking to sometimes get 2 vs 1 out wide with Cafu and Hassler fantastic at that and Cristiano, Baggio and Messi dangerous wherever they get the ball with their ability to run.

Why I'll score multiple goals:
-Cristiano-Baggio-Messi is a perfect trio who complement each other brilliantly with Baggio looking to drop off and leaving gaps for Messi and Cristiano to attack.Stam-Neville isn't a very mobile right side to defend against Cristiano, so I think he's pretty damn likely to get his usual goal. Baggio might also find some space to run at Stam, too, which he'd probably be uncomfortable with.

-I've added Cafu and with Carboni tucking in on the other side and Makelele playing as defensively as you'd expect, he should have a fair bit of license to get forward. Maldini was brilliant, but just a man and Messi with Cafu overlapping would literally be the greatest attacking right side of all time. And Cafu has Cristiano as a lethal aerial target for crosses. Friedel being weak at dealing with crosses is an issue here to consider as well.

Why I won't concede more than one:
-The notable exception of Ronaldo Lima aside, there's not very much pace going forward in Aldo's side. Rivaldo didn't like playing out left and Basler was good but not great and should be well-marshalled by Carboni. Makelele

-Hassler is smart enough to drop back when Cafu overlaps him and without a top level threat on the other wing, Makelele was mobile enough to help out wide and help on Rivaldo too. Neither Simeone nor Keane were long-range threats at all, or particularly effective in any offensive way from open play in the middle of the pitch so that's a bit of a safety valve for me. Overall, Simeone and Keane isn't a particularly creative pair. Maybe too similar to really dovetail perfectly on offense.

-Cech, at his best, was pretty incredible in every facet of the game.

-Ronaldo Lima could run at anyone and cause damage in his prime, but at least Aldair and Silva is a very, very athletic pair who won't be roasted like a slower pair would.

My Case:
-At this stage, both teams are full of top players and the ones who weren't outright legends were workaholics who won things (Hassler, Simeone, Carboni, Basler) and were top performers for fantastic teams. I have a ton of respect for the back 6 Aldo has put together, but I think his front 4 might not gel together very well and he might have a more broken team than I do in general with players duplicating each other's roles a bit more.

-Keane-Simeone and Makelele-Schweinsteiger would be fantastic at breaking up attacks through the middle, but when I get the ball wide it's Messi and Ronaldo on their usual inverted wings running at goal and when he gets it wide it's Rivaldo out left and Basler on the right. Also, both Keane and Simeone were aggressive Gattuso types who charged out a lot, whereas Makelele and Schweinsteiger is a better balance of a proper holder. I have a 6 and an 8 whereas he sort of has two 8's.

-Ronaldo and Rivaldo were both incredible goal threats, but Basler and Hagi far less so, whereas Messi and Cristiano are even greater goal threats than his scary pair and Baggio outscored Basler and Hagi combined. Could decide the game.
 
If Aldo scores first, he will just close ranks and a battle tank would not be enough to break that open. But then NoPace tactics are set up to counter that.

Ro-Ro with Hagi might just make the difference. Ronaldo and Messi are good and no lack of creativity in the middle, but I still they lack the presence of a 'Romario' there.
 
I'd just like to re-iterate the last line of my writeup, there are two great attacks out there but I hold a definite advantage in defense, and I am in a better position to stop him than he is to stop me. Like EAP said if I score first I can easily shut up shop, whereas if he scores first his defense cannot really keep a clean sheet or carry out 70 odd minutes without letting my attack create chances.

Paolo Maldini, Jaap Stam, Marcel Desailly, Gary Neville shielded by Roy Keane and Diego Simeone is a much better defensive unit than his, simple as that.

Proven partnerships there as well and understanding in defense matters a lot. Keane, Stam and Neville are well versed with each other, winning 3 leagues and a CL in 3 seasons when they played together. :)
 
Nopace's team is more balanced IMO

It has much better width and I think Aldo's team with Hagi, Rivaldo and Ronaldo could become clustered which plays right into the hands of Makelele and Schweinsteiger.

At fullback Neville was more of a centre back playing fullback than a winger playing fullback - point being he's not going to be the one to open the game up going forward. That's in contrast to Cafu who is perfect for stretching the pitch out and dragging away defenders.

A frequent event I could imagine developing would be Messi receiving the ball before dribbling infield - committing the three or four players it takes to try and stop him - whilst Cafu overlaps on the outside. That's a good enough combination to open up any defence and much harder to defend against than narrow attacks in which defenders can tuck in tight to each other.

Aldo has a brick wall though the spine of his team but much of the threat from Nopace is going to come from wide positions. There's not much Keane can do when Ronaldo is running at Neville or Cafu overlaps past Messi.

Going the other way now - As a holding midfielder Makelele is just as good as Keane - not on the same level generally of course, but as a pure defensive midfielder he's arguably actually better - and Schweinsteiger is IMO better than Simeone. So Nopace has a pretty sturdy wall himself and I think they have an easier time defending here than Aldo does.

Even though his attack is not particularly balanced there's enough creativity in Aldo's front three to probably get a goal here, but I think Nopace scoring is more likely and he would win this one more than half of the time for me.
 
Keane has Desailly and Stam behind him as well, whereas bypass Makelele (it is not impossible certainly with my players) and you are running at Thiago Silva and Aldair.
 
Aldo said:
Keane has Desailly and Stam behind him as well, whereas bypass Makelele (it is not impossible certainly with my players) and you are running at Thiago Silva and Aldair.
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No doubt about that, but they're central players again which is what I was trying to get at. You have the better defence but I think Nopace's attack is more balanced and often I think he'll manage to by pass the central areas which is where both teams are strong.

I love Keane and think he's fantastic, but whilst he's a much bigger name than Makelele I don't think he was a better pure DM. Keane is much better on the ball and overall comfortably the much better player, but he didn't play with that raw discipline that Makelele did just to sit in that area 10 yards in front of the defence and try and plug gaps. Keane was as much a playmaker as he was a defensive midfielder really, not in terms of raking 40 yard passes across the pitch but in terms of being the foundation for virtually all United attacks with sharp, accurate 15 yard passes.

What I'm trying to say there is that whilst Keane is the better player, Makelele was better at just sitting and shielding the back line which is what he's doing here. I see your attack as being more centrally orientated than Nopace's which plays into his hands and is always easier to defend against without offensive fullbacks compensating.

Small margins as they're both great teams, but I think it could come down to that greater width bypassing the brick wall in the middle.
 
In terms of individual class Aldo´s defence and NoPace´s offence match each other fairly well. NoPace can surely score even if he is behind, but Aldo wont be dominated. The notion that the defence can just "shut down everything" is ridiculous.

Hagi, Basler and to some extend Neville are all rather slow/lethargic players (considering the level we are talking about). There is nobody who can really punish C. Ronaldo for his weaknesses. I think thats the key, which allows him to have a very good game. Furthermore NoPace has many "different routes to score" and is very flexible in going forward

Ronaldo is hart to stop, especially if someone like Hagi can set him up. Still I think thats the only major threat.

I dont think that this game would turn into parking the bus/a defensive battle. Both sides have a couple of goals in them, but i favor NoPace.
 
Theon said:
No doubt about that, but they're central players again which is what I was trying to get at. You have the better defence but I think Nopace's attack is more balanced and often I think he'll manage to by pass the central areas which is where both teams are strong.

I love Keane and think he's fantastic, but whilst he's a much bigger name than Makelele I don't think he was a better pure DM. Keane is much better on the ball and overall comfortably the much better player, but he didn't play with that raw discipline that Makelele did just to sit in that area 10 yards in front of the defence and try and plug gaps. Keane was as much a playmaker as he was a defensive midfielder really, not in terms of raking 40 yard passes across the pitch but in terms of being the foundation for virtually all United attacks with sharp, accurate 15 yard passes.

What I'm trying to say there is that whilst Keane is the better player, Makelele was better at just sitting and shielding the back line which is what he's doing here. I see your attack as being more centrally orientated than Nopace's which plays into his hands and is always easier to defend against without offensive fullbacks compensating.

Small margins as they're both great teams, but I think it could come down to that greater width bypassing the brick wall in the middle.
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Maldini played in a diamond and xmas tree for a lot of years so its a bit unfair to say he won't provide offensively. I don't actually see balance in his attack, he is playing Messi as an outlet in a false 9 system, a role that Pedro played with Messi as false 9. It would waste Messi's ability on the ball specially his creativity as he won;t see much of the ball in that role and he has Paolo Maldini to beat in the few chances he does.

In terms of me being central, it suits me even if it is like that which I have explained in my write up that it isn't Basler will frequently interchange with Hagi and stretch that side, while Rivaldo with Maldini is there on the left. In relative terms, his CB pair is his weakness and I don't think he can withstand my attack. We are talking Ronaldo here, he made a mug of Nesta, Thuram, Cannavaro and what not. I belive by defense is not getting the credit it deserves if it's supposed to be on par with Nopace's specially when I have Ronaldo to attack his CBs.

Also Keane is not sitting in front of defense like Makelele, as explained in the tactics.
 
I would have Keane higher than Simeone though - they both were more a box-to-box than defensive midfielders but if you need to restrain one of them due to the tactics it should be Diego as he won't be as influential as Keane in a more of a free role.

I don't like NoPace's attack, really - it oozes class but I think that Baggio and peak Messi were very similar players and this can go both ways - either they would understand each other perfectly or they would struggle to make a partnership. If it isn't peak Messi and it is a young one (which makes sense as he is attacking from the right), then he isn't the same thread, albeit still being world class

On the other hand, there is a proven Ri-Ro pair. Aldo's attack lacks width though which is a perfect situation for Makelele to do what he can best.

Ronaldo is the exactly the type of player that Neville always had problem to deal with.

Very hard decision.
 
PedroMendez said:
In terms of individual class Aldo´s defence and NoPace´s offence match each other fairly well. NoPace can surely score even if he is behind, but Aldo wont be dominated. The notion that the defence can just "shut down everything" is ridiculous.

Hagi, Basler and to some extend Neville are all rather slow/lethargic players (considering the level we are talking about). There is nobody who can really punish C. Ronaldo for his weaknesses. I think thats the key, which allows him to have a very good game. Furthermore NoPace has many "different routes to score" and is very flexible in going forward

Ronaldo is hart to stop, especially if someone like Hagi can set him up. Still I think thats the only major threat.

I dont think that this game would turn into parking the bus/a defensive battle. Both sides have a couple of goals in them, but i favor NoPace.
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C Ronaldo can't be stopped if he gets enough service, the way he has been stopped is cutting his supply and I have to midfield generals there to not allow the other team to get on the ball for a long time with constant harrying and immense work rate and closing down.

It's also unfair to call Hagi lethargic. Even when he lost pace in his time at Turkey he could easily weave his way past players but before that he was a furious dribbler and had immense close control with good enough pace, and most importantly the mobility and willingness to constantly move around and look for pockets of space. His assist against Argentina in 94 came with him darting down the space left by the fullback (a role Carboni is performing here). In him and Rivaldo I have two players who are a nuisance for an opposition defense and very tough to man mark, which is going to be trouble for Makelele who is a monumental job of protecting a soft defense against possibly the greatest and most terrorizing striker to have ever played the game.
 
Aldo said:
Maldini played in a diamond and xmas tree for a lot of years so its a bit unfair to say he won't provide offensively. I don't actually see balance in his attack, he is playing Messi as an outlet in a false 9 system, a role that Pedro played with Messi as false 9. It would waste Messi's ability on the ball specially his creativity as he won;t see much of the ball in that role and he has Paolo Maldini to beat in the few chances he does.

In terms of me being central, it suits me even if it is like that which I have explained in my write up that it isn't Basler will frequently interchange with Hagi and stretch that side, while Rivaldo with Maldini is there on the left. In relative terms, his CB pair is his weakness and I don't think he can withstand my attack. We are talking Ronaldo here, he made a mug of Nesta, Thuram, Cannavaro and what not. I belive by defense is not getting the credit it deserves if it's supposed to be on par with Nopace's specially when I have Ronaldo to attack his CBs.

Also Keane is not sitting in front of defense like Makelele, as explained in the tactics.
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I'll try and address your points briefly. Firstly I never said anything about Maldini so I'm not sure where you've got that from. He's no Cafu though, let's be clear.

Messi was fantastic on the right wing and I don't see what you're trying to get at by highlighting how he was also great as a false 9. He can and did excel in both positions.

I don't think being central does suit you. It doesn't suit any team and it certainly doesn't suit a team up against Makelele and Schweinsteiger in midfield. You want to try and stretch those players and create some space to play in.

I never said that Keane was sitting in front of the defence - though it does look like that in your formation. What I said is that for all the talk about you having an impenetrable defence, that Makelele was actually better at this that Keane. You've got the bigger name there and better player overall, but in terms of being an 'incredible wall' as you mention in the OP Makelele was at least as good and probably better.
 
Theon said:
I'll try and address your points briefly. Firstly I never said anything about Maldini so I'm not sure where you've got that from. He's no Cafu though, let's be clear.

Messi was fantastic on the right wing and I don't see what you're trying to get at by highlighting how he was also great as a false 9. He can and did excel in both positions.

I don't think being central does suit you. It doesn't suit any team and it certainly doesn't suit a team up against Makelele and Schweinsteiger in midfield. You want to try and stretch those players and create some space to play in.

I never said that Keane was sitting in front of the defence - though it does look like that in your formation. What I said is that for all the talk about you having an impenetrable defence, that Makelele was actually better at this that Keane. You've got the bigger name there and better player overall, but in terms of being an 'incredible wall' as you mention in the OP Makelele was at least as good and probably better.
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I was talking about Messi being an outlet in a false 9 system. Barca did not play a false 9 system when he played on the right, he was pretty much running at defenses from 25-30 yards. That's not the role of a wide forward in a false 9, when Baggio drops deep as per his game you need Messi to make runs behind the defense. I'll quote what viper had to say about the same thing in the semi final he probably put it better than I can.. Here he's facing possibly the best defensive resistance any right sided player can face in a fantasy game.

The Red Viper said:
I must say, I am surprised to see that you have dropped Rooney. You have Messi playing out wide which isn't an issue. He was brilliant in that role for Barcelona in Pep's first season during 2008-09 but you are playing him out wide in a false nine formation. When you are playing a false nine formation, you need players who would make runs beyond their marker. Cristiano would certainly do that. Messi can as well but you would be restricting his influence. Both Messi and Baggio like to be at the centre of the things and make the play.
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I'll disagree with you that having a go at Thiago Silva and Aldair with Rivaldo and Ronaldo doesn't suit me.

My wall's fundamental is the fantastic CB pair well capable of holding it's own even without a top DM. Stam did that in our treble season when Fergie played a gung ho 4-4-2 and left spaces in front of defense, with Stam taking care of matters singlehandedly and was voted the best defender in Europe for doing that. And he's next to Desailly.

Makelele can be a better destroyer but against my attack he'd struggle due to his lack of mobility. I'm not playing a Rui Costa type of AM here who;s going to sit and pull strings, hagi was a livewire and would drag him all over, and that;s not Makelele's comfort zone. On the other hand Keane's job is not to be a destoryer or man mark anyone, it is to close down and press the opposition and not let them take the ball forward. In a nutshell Keane's job suits what he's best at, and does not restrict him to a man marker or a destroyer which he would be if Nopace had someone like Zidane or Platini whereas Makelele's weaknesses are being exposed here. Then when you take into account that Makelele beaten means Ronaldo and Rivaldo running at Aldair and SIlva whereas Keane even if he's gone forward as his box to box days dictate have two stalwarts and Desailly has no problem stepping out and thwarting the danger.
 
Two great teams and it's very tight. However, I've gone for Aldo on the basis that:
  • Messi, Hassler and Baggio will all be dribbling into the same sort of inside-right area, which is patrolled by Keane and Simeone. It's difficult to think of two better players for that job. Any breakdown there with Cafu upfield could be decisive.
  • Aldair might struggle with Ronaldo.
 
I completely disagree that you're exposing Makelele's weaknesses here - really, I think that's nonsense. You're attack is centrally orientated which suits Makelele perfectly. He'll just play a classic #6 holding role, with Schweinsteiger and Hassler ahead of him. Most of the dangerous attacks from Hagi, Ronaldo and Rivaldo are going to occur in this area. Really, this suits him fine and I think you've got that one all wrong.

Of course Stam is a great defender but Ronaldo, Baggio and Messi ain't bad either so I don't think he has it too easy here. And of course all I've said all along is that Nopace can mix his attack up more than you can - Stam isn't going to do much when Ronaldo is running at Neville.

Aldo said:
I'll disagree with you that having a go at Thiago Silva and Aldair with Rivaldo and Ronaldo doesn't suit me.
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You're ignoring what I'm saying here. It isn't Ronaldo + Rivaldo vs Silva + Aldair and I think that's a silly way to look at it. The point is that it's a narrow attack. This is easier to defend against and it means that Nopace's fullbacks can tuck in and his midfield can play tight. Can't make it any more explicit than that. Fair enough if you disagree but teams playing narrow and struggling to break down teams is one of the most frequent things you see in matches - United have gone through it themselves recently.

Viewing it as Ronaldo + Rivaldo vs Silva + Aldair is misrepresenting what is going on IMO. I mean really, why would it ever be like that? What's Cafu doing for instance seeing as he has no reason to be covering the wide positions with Rivaldo going central to attack the centre backs? He's not going to be standing there defending the flanks when you have no one there.
 
Both attack looks brilliant but Aldo's defense looks much better compared to other.
 
Theon said:
I completely disagree that you're exposing Makelele's weaknesses here - really, I think that's nonsense. You're attack is centrally orientated which suits Makelele perfectly. He'll just play a classic #6 holding role, with Schweinsteiger and Hassler ahead of him. Most of the dangerous attacks from Hagi, Ronaldo and Rivaldo are going to occur in this area. Really, this suits him fine and I think you've got that one all wrong.

Of course Stam is a great defender but Ronaldo, Baggio and Messi ain't bad either so I don't think he has it too easy here. And of course all I've said all along is that Nopace can mix his attack up more than you can - Stam isn't going to do much when Ronaldo is running at Neville.



You're ignoring what I'm saying here. It isn't Ronaldo + Rivaldo vs Silva + Aldair and I think that's a silly way to look at it. The point is that it's a narrow attack. This is easier to defend against and it means that Nopace's fullbacks can tuck in and his midfield can play tight. Can't make it any more explicit than that. Fair enough if you disagree but teams playing narrow and struggling to break down teams is one of the most frequent things you see in matches - United have gone through it themselves recently.

Viewing it as Ronaldo + Rivaldo vs Silva + Aldair is misrepresenting what is going on IMO. I mean really, why would it ever be like that? What's Cafu doing for instance seeing as he has no reason to be covering the wide positions with Rivaldo going central to attack the centre backs? He's not going to be standing there defending the flanks when you have no one there.
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It's not about the fact that I am attacking where Makelele will be standing, yes that's true but it's about what type of players are attacking that space. I'd disagree if you say Makelele was a complete DM who could deal with any kind of threat. He wasn't, he had his limitations and strengths. The famous "bypassing of Makelele" is what I am aiming for here and have the players to do it. You've also underrated Hagi's willingness and ability to work out wide. He's a properly versatile AM, and it makes sense given his skillset that he is able to function all across the width of the pitch. Not a touchline hugger by any stretch of imagination but he's not gooing to be sticking to that 5-10 yard space in the middle either. You have also ignored the point I made about him interchanging with Basler, the latter capable of providing genuine width a la Beckham.
 
Am surprised Hagi and Rivaldo are playing narrowly and it's a 4-3-3. I think that suits Makelele who would have a big impact.

Not sure why people think Baggio-Messi wouldn't work. Baggio was brilliant dropping deeper and Messi has been blunted only by fairly immobile 9's, not the false 9 type Baggio would play brilliantly.
 
I love Messi and Ronaldo's role here, when you got those two in free roles, you don't need a proper striker, and Baggio as the false 9 is brilliant imo. Might not catch the eye of the random voter but I think it's brilliant.
Votes nopace
 
I've gone Aldo. I don't buy into much of what's been said about both teams to be honest, but don't have time right now to elaborate.

NoPace has created a great side though and voting against a team with Messi and CR7 is hard. But Ronaldo9 is being massively underrated here. He will run rings around NoPaces defence IMO.
 
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VivaJanuzaj said:
I love Messi and Ronaldo's role here, when you got those two in free roles, you don't need a proper striker, and Baggio as the false 9 is brilliant imo. Might not catch the eye of the random voter but I think it's brilliant.
Votes nopace
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Yeah, I'm not sure there's anyone ever I would take instead of Baggio as a central option between Cristiano and Messi. Maybe Totti would be almost as good and Bergkamp wasn't the absolute feck off legend Baggio was, but he makes sense too. I think you definitely need mobility to not get in their way, from your 9.

I really though this would be closer. Aldo's got a significantly better D, I have the better attack with much more pace and the much better keeper, while our midfields are tight, though I think mine would work in reality a bit better with Makelele at least as good a pure holding DM as Keane was, Schweinsteiger slightly better than Simeone overall and Hassler just a better player than Basler overall.
 
Very close this. Especially the midfield battle. Aldo has some great players like Roy Keane and Diego Simeone, but NoPace has a better balance in his midfield. NoPace's attack is sensational but Aldo's defence is great as well. Leo against Maldini would be a fascinating battle while Desailly's stint as a DM at Milan would come really handy now while dealing against someone like Baggio as whenever Baggio would drop deep, Desailly can track him and ensure Baggio isn't able to playmake from the deeper position freely. Cristiano would get the better of Gary Neville though. Even though Keane would help Neville out but during counters, Neville would have a tough time dealing with Cristiano. On the other hand, the trio of Hagi - Rivaldo - Ronaldo is fascinating as well and while in terms of individual talent, Messi - Cristiano - Baggio is a better trio, the trio of Hagi - Rivaldo - Ronaldo would complement each other more. Its very close overall. But, I am going with Aldo as I expect Aldo's attack to do better against NoPace's defence than vice versa. Aldair and Thiago Silva are good defenders but you need that one genuine top class centre back, especially while dealing against someone of Ronaldo's calibre.
 
Guess that's my first draft win in the mains (apart from being anto's AM)!

Didn't think I had a chance after the initial draft so a bit of a surprise to have gone the whole way.

Thanks for the great draft, @rpitroda . Really enjoyed it and I think overall it was a successful draft. Good game, @NoPace , thought you'd win this tbh as you had steamrolled your way till now, you did a great job.
 
Congrats on the win Aldo, deserved it. You always seem to be a bit pessimistic and negative about yourself but you've showed that you can go all the way.

I think you've developed well as a drafter the last few drafts and it was quite clear that you'd win one sooner rather than later.
 
Congrats NP too, you did great all draft and deserved to be in the final.
 
Well done Aldo! Well deserved victory, after deserving the overall win in a few previous drafts imo. The first championship of many for you I reckon!

Unlucky Nopace. I voted for you in every game I think. This was the closest yet, and in the end it was practically a coin toss for me. Ultimately, I thought your width in attack and Ronaldo getting some joy against Neville was the likeliest route to a goal or two.
 
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