Physio:________________________________________Pat Mustard:
PHYSIO:
Tactics – Direct/ Mixed
Formation – 352
Defensive Line – Balanced to High
Marking – Zonal
A relatively offensive 352 looking to keep the ball and create lots of chances. The star men are the strike duo: Pele and Batistuta - perfect and complimentary front two. Pele can clearly create something out of nothing in the space between the lines but will also be provided many through balls by Overath and Cubillas in addition to excellent crossing from the tireless Robertson and Zambrotta. Unlike most draft games both strikers are excellent in the air. Senna will sit in front the of the back three providing protection and a tidy outlet in possession. The back three are ideally suited to the task: Bossis and Ivanovic have experience at full-back and at CB, plus McGrath as a complete CB is ideal as a modern central CB.
MUSTARD:
Formation: 4-3-3
The Star Player:
He's there or thereabouts in any draft pool he's eligible for anyway, but given how perfectly his supernatural peak coincides with his 2010-2014 timeframe, I'm confident that Messi is the best player in this draft. A list of his individual accomplishments in the timeframe (274 goals in 264 matches for Barcelona, three Ballon d'Ors, a World Cup Golden Ball, three time La Liga top scorer and a near-stranglehold on the Liga Best Player Award) goes some way towards illustrating the extraordinary level of performance he reached, but I think I prefer Jorge Valdano's quote:
“Messi is Maradona every day. He has played at the level of Maradona in 1986 for the past five years.”
It was a difficult drafting process but in the end I feel that we've put the necessary structure in place for Messi to thrive.
The Selection Headache:
It became clear depressingly early that I was going to get nowhere near many of my initial targets for several positions. Henrik Larsson though, was someone I'd earmarked for the right-forward gig from the start - with his exceptional movement, good work rate and polished approach play I felt he'd provide a reasonable facsimile of the qualities that hitherto centre-forwards David Villa and Samuel Eto'o brought to the table when they played out wide alongside False 9 Messi. I reassessed things as the draft progressed. With Messi who could score 73 goals in a season, the prolific Rensenbrink, and other secondary goal threats dotted throughout the team, I reluctantly concluded that Larsson, who for all his well-roundedness was still primarily a goalscorer, was a bit superfluous. More control of the match and more chance creation seemed a better bet than another heavy goalscorer.
For that reason I've opted for Bernardo Silva instead. A magician with the ball at his feet and possessor of one of the finest first touches I've seen, but it's his tactical understanding and team ethos that sets him apart for me. Capable of playing basically anywhere across the midfield and attack, and having played both as a False 9 and with a False 9, he'll know when to stay wide to draw defenders away from Messi and when to move centrally.
With the opposition's creative outlets to some degree seeming to prefer the left channels of the pitch, Bernardo's incredible engine will be a crucial asset in the defensive phase too. As Pep jizzed a few years back, "He's the guy who's the most beloved in our team, he's one of the most talented players I've ever seen, he can play three of four positions. He knows when he doesn't play good it doesn't matter, he runs the most. You cannot play every three games at the top level but you can run and run."
PHYSIO:
Tactics – Direct/ Mixed
Formation – 352
Defensive Line – Balanced to High
Marking – Zonal
A relatively offensive 352 looking to keep the ball and create lots of chances. The star men are the strike duo: Pele and Batistuta - perfect and complimentary front two. Pele can clearly create something out of nothing in the space between the lines but will also be provided many through balls by Overath and Cubillas in addition to excellent crossing from the tireless Robertson and Zambrotta. Unlike most draft games both strikers are excellent in the air. Senna will sit in front the of the back three providing protection and a tidy outlet in possession. The back three are ideally suited to the task: Bossis and Ivanovic have experience at full-back and at CB, plus McGrath as a complete CB is ideal as a modern central CB.
MUSTARD:
Formation: 4-3-3
The Star Player:
He's there or thereabouts in any draft pool he's eligible for anyway, but given how perfectly his supernatural peak coincides with his 2010-2014 timeframe, I'm confident that Messi is the best player in this draft. A list of his individual accomplishments in the timeframe (274 goals in 264 matches for Barcelona, three Ballon d'Ors, a World Cup Golden Ball, three time La Liga top scorer and a near-stranglehold on the Liga Best Player Award) goes some way towards illustrating the extraordinary level of performance he reached, but I think I prefer Jorge Valdano's quote:
“Messi is Maradona every day. He has played at the level of Maradona in 1986 for the past five years.”
It was a difficult drafting process but in the end I feel that we've put the necessary structure in place for Messi to thrive.
- Assembling a midfield that could truly replicate the Xaviesta suffocation-by-possession model was never really on the cards here, and so it proved. My Voronin/Effenberg/Modric trio is a powerful unit in it's own right though, and still slanted towards the possession-based side of the spectrum. Along with the strong seam of technical ability running through the rest of the team, I fancy us to have more possession and territorial dominance here. The technically sublime Chivadze deserves a special mention here, as he'll play an important role in establishing our passing game and building out from the back.
- Having someone to capitalise on Messi's signature right-to-left through ball seemed a must here, and there's few better than prolific speedster Rensenbrink.
- His on-pitch synergy with Dani Alves was a striking aspect of Messi's peak years, so it seemed logical to bring in the attacking juggernaut Maicon, who was good enough to supplant Alves in the Brazil team at his peak.
The Selection Headache:
It became clear depressingly early that I was going to get nowhere near many of my initial targets for several positions. Henrik Larsson though, was someone I'd earmarked for the right-forward gig from the start - with his exceptional movement, good work rate and polished approach play I felt he'd provide a reasonable facsimile of the qualities that hitherto centre-forwards David Villa and Samuel Eto'o brought to the table when they played out wide alongside False 9 Messi. I reassessed things as the draft progressed. With Messi who could score 73 goals in a season, the prolific Rensenbrink, and other secondary goal threats dotted throughout the team, I reluctantly concluded that Larsson, who for all his well-roundedness was still primarily a goalscorer, was a bit superfluous. More control of the match and more chance creation seemed a better bet than another heavy goalscorer.
For that reason I've opted for Bernardo Silva instead. A magician with the ball at his feet and possessor of one of the finest first touches I've seen, but it's his tactical understanding and team ethos that sets him apart for me. Capable of playing basically anywhere across the midfield and attack, and having played both as a False 9 and with a False 9, he'll know when to stay wide to draw defenders away from Messi and when to move centrally.
With the opposition's creative outlets to some degree seeming to prefer the left channels of the pitch, Bernardo's incredible engine will be a crucial asset in the defensive phase too. As Pep jizzed a few years back, "He's the guy who's the most beloved in our team, he's one of the most talented players I've ever seen, he can play three of four positions. He knows when he doesn't play good it doesn't matter, he runs the most. You cannot play every three games at the top level but you can run and run."
I love the Batistuta-Pele front two.