DWelbz19
Correctly predicted Portugal to win Euro 2016
- Joined
- Oct 31, 2012
- Messages
- 35,277
There’s life in the old TikToker yet
The decline in defenders in recent years can’t be overstated in this debate imo.The likes of Ruud, Shevchenko, Raul, Eto'o all hover around the 400 career goals mark
Benzema 495 Suarez 580
Lewandowski is approaching 700 with seemingly a lot more left in the tank. Crazy numbers
Na I watched him at his prime but he still lacks that ‘extra’ bit individual brilliance the likes of Suarez and R9 had. I agree that I probably oversimplified his game but he’s still not as magical as the aforementioned in his prime for me. Suarez in particular was an incredible playmaker & passer at his best.You must have missed his entire peak then. This is him at 36.
Has scored plenty of great goals in his prime and goals of all kinds. Bicycle, volley, acrobatic stuff, solo goals, backheels, long shots, headers, free kicks he has done it all. He's anything but robotic. He used to have the best first touch and ball control.
His hold up play with back to goal is levels above Suarez.
I know what you mean. He’s a really lethal striker who if you feed him will score goals, but doesn’t have the ability to run at players like Suarez or Aguero. That doesn’t mean he’s only useful inside the box though, or that he isn’t technically gifted. But I get what you mean about lacking that directness and pace.Na I watched him at his prime but he still lacks that ‘extra’ bit individual brilliance the likes of Suarez and R9 had. I agree that I probably oversimplified his game but he’s still not as magical as the aforementioned in his prime for me.
I find it hard to rank him as a player. He’s obviously a historic striker with incredible longevity but he seems so stiff and robotic on the pitch. He’s a machine and uber efficient at what he does but lacks the magic and ingenuity of players like Suarez who could pull a rabbit out of a hat in his prime; as evidenced by his years at Liverpool. I couldn’t imagine Lewandowski doing half of the stuff Suarez was doing those seasons despite being a better, more efficient scorer for longer.
It’s a tricky one really. It really depends on what you value more. The qualitative, intangible stuff or a well oiled, efficient machine.
I hate this whole narrative that defenders have declined. Defenders haven't declined, social media was born, tactics are more aggressive than before and very importantly refereeing is much more stricter with smaller mistakes leading to penalties. Individual mistakes are replayed more and hyper analyzed to make any defender look horrible. The fact that you list Lucio, who was Upamecano like for Bayern, is indicative of that. It wasn't until he went to Inter that he actually looked like a world class defender because Jose stopped him from going forward so much.The decline in defenders in recent years can’t be overstated in this debate imo.
Those guys had to contend with Maldini, Nesta, Cannavaro, Stam, Rio, Vidic, Terry, Lucio, Desailly, Puyol, Hierro etc.
Nowadays Van Dijk is considered the best around, and every team tries to play out from the back.
That's because Lewy was never a technical South American wunderkind, he was an unfancied Polish kid who almost joined Blackburn in 2010 if not for Icelandic volcanoes disrupting European air travel. He didn't score much in his 1st season at Dortmund until he learned how to play back to goal under Klopp, it's why his goals per game is significantly higher at Bayern and Barca. At Dortmund he worked incredibly hard in the gym to build up his upper body for Klopp's Gegenpressing, he got great at outmuscling defenders 1v1 and was outstanding holding up the ball under pressure, his teammates called him The Body. At Bayern and Barcelona he's had to reinvent himself to play against 10 men defences where he needs to score in tight spaces and he's constantly improved to meet higher expectations.Na I watched him at his prime but he still lacks that ‘extra’ bit individual brilliance the likes of Suarez and R9 had. I agree that I probably oversimplified his game but he’s still not as magical as the aforementioned in his prime for me.
It was a robbery that it was cancelled, and he should be awarded it still if they were to do the right thing.He wasn't robbed, he didn't get it because of the cancelled ceremony in 2020. If you mean the year after that, Messi deserved it. Messi deserved every one he got, frankly.
There were rumors he was gonna get it years later but it was denied.It was a robbery that it was cancelled, and he should be awarded it still if they were to do the right thing.
Not with all the rest besides and behind him.We can do with someone like him up front...
Someone like him is Chris Wood, I'm sure the Utd board would sign off on giving Forest Anthony in a swap dealWe can do with someone like him up front...
His longevity is amazing.
He was robbed of the Ballon D'or in 2020 when they cancelled it(they could have held it virtually).
It was purely political. France football was hoping for Mbappe to win it but since Ligue 1 got stopped and they lost the CL, they used the excuse of some leagues not being completely finished to not award it .There wasn't problem with the ceremony ifself, if I remember correctly, but because the 19/20 season was skipped in some countries and some league played, some didn't.
Still, terrible reason not to give the award, though.
I agree 100%It was a robbery that it was cancelled, and he should be awarded it still if they were to do the right thing.
By the way, Lewandowski's got 14 league goals and we're still in October (he scored his 14th in late April), while overall he scored 19 league goals last season.
It's extraordinary what Flick does to him.
And Barcelona are 37-10 after 11 games... it's like watching different sport when we watch United, 7-9 after 8 games.