Sheep Draft R1 - Marty1968/bleezy v Chesterlestreet

[Gio]

TEAM MARTY1968 / BLEEZY​

Our team is set up to play either as a 4-3-3 or 4-5-1 and has talent all the way through the spine of the team.

At the back, one of the best German keepers ever. Eccentric? Possibly. Unpredictable? Probably. An outstanding keeper as good as any other in his prime? Absolutely!! Oliver Kahn might have been as mad as a box of frogs but was one of the best keepers in the world for many years in the 2000’s, including being named in the 2002 World Cup team of the tournament and third place in the Ballon D’or in 2001 and 2002. Incredible reflexes, presence and awareness helped him command from the back and look out anybody who get in his way.

Yes Chesterlestreet’s striker may have scored three against him on that famous night in Germany but that was without two sensational centre backs in front of him.

Koeman and Segarra are two players from very different eras but are both from the same mould. Rock solid, excellent markers, incredible ball control and both an attacking threat. Together they would be able to contain Chester’s front two of Owen and Larsson

His intelligence and organisation from the back would help to control the back line and his excellent distribution and awareness will snuff out any attacking threat from Owen/Larsson.

Segarra, known as ‘El Gran Capitan’ played for Barca from 1949 to 1964 and was sensational either at left back or centre half and is renowned for his gentlemanly approach to the game and his reputation for fair play which marked him out as a Barcelona legend. Winner of 4 league titles, two fairs cups and a total of 528 appearances for Barca.

Segarra was renowned for his nobility and grace when playing on the field, which won him the admiration of fans all over the world. He was a predecessor of the "total footballer", which would later be epitomized by Johan Cruyff (who was, not coincidentally, a great admirer of Segarra's), but was played mostly at left- and centre-back. He was brave and totally dedicated to the team, never ceasing to yell encouragement to his team when they were down and pushing them when they were ahead. He was an excellent marker who was rock-solid. Though he was a defender, he was a courageous player who would push forward and had a stunning shot; he scored several decisive goals. However, he missed what was perhaps his best opportunity to show his skills to the continent during the 1960–61 European Cup final, when Barça lost to S.L. Benfica 3-2; Segarra was sidelined with an eye injury.

On either side we have two hardworking, disciplined full backs. Winterburn might not be the first name on the team sheet, but he was excellent for Arsenal; always rock solid, hard-working and always gave 100% for the team. Srna is an attacking full back who will help to provide plenty of width on the right hand side as well as providing excellent service to Fontaine from crosses and set pieces. This width will allow Zola to roam about the pitch without needing to worry about sticking to the wing.

In front of the back four we have three rock solid centre mids in Cambiasso, Cerezo and Ballack – each of them happy to run all day long, hound the opposition, tackle, keep possession and provide the heartbeat of all our attacking play. Ballack will be the attacking one of the three and during the 2000’s there weren’t many better than him.

The three hardworking midfielders will enable Gianfranco Zola to have a free role, and the little genius will thrive on that. He’ll happily pull Chester’s back four out of position and help to provide Fontaine with the space he needs to score.






Just Fontaine – A classic centre forward who had the most explosive goal scoring exploits in World Cup history with 13 in just 6 games. It’s hard to imagine any player ever coming close to that in the future. 200 goals in 213 games for Reims/Nice and 30 goals in 21 games for France make him as good a finisher as anybody else in the draft.

Why we would win.

We have a rock solid spine running through the team with an outstanding keeper, two great centre backs, three great centre-mids and Fontaine to finish every opportunity he gets.

Just Fontaine - There are no other strikers in this draft who have as good a record as Fontaine, and the creativity of Zola and Ballack behind him, plus service from out wide by Srna would provide him with opportunities all game.

 

[Gio]

TEAM CHESTERLESTREET​

Key points/strengths/roles:

Spoiler: Player roles.

GK: Fillol. Strenghts: Reflexes. Match winning saves.

CB: Franklin. Style: Fairly conservative. Will use his ball playing quality to bring the ball out, but mainly through passing (as opposed to making any wild runs with the ball up the pitch).

CB: Wright. Style: Conservative. A stopper.

RB: Bezsonov. Style: Balanced. Will likely have to keep an eye on Zola, which could put certain limitations on his offensive game. Should nevertheless be able to venture forward to an extent and combine with Mendieta.

LB: Júnior. Style: Largely offensive, but defensively sound. Part of his natural game is to drift inside to an extent, and given the likelihood of my opponents positively crowding the middle of the park here, this is not something I will discourage, especially when I'm off the ball. But his primary job is to operate as a fairly offensive fullback, with whatever risks and benefits this entails.

DM: Mullery. Style: Fairly conservative. He will mainly hold, keeping tabs on Ballack in particular (who is likely to be making deep and dangerous runs here). Nevertheless, he's normally capable of contributing a fair bit offensively, and I don't think that part of his game will be entirely stifled here. Useful for joining the attack on the counter, certainly, and his speed and stamina will enable him to get back and forth without this being overly hazardous.

CM: Blanchflower. Style: Playmaker. Very far from being a luxury player, however, Will track back and keep the shape defensively whenever called upon. Will seek to get on the ball and use it creatively. Key strength (relevant to this particular match): Passing range (and precision, needless to say).

RM: Mendieta. Style: Balanced. Role: Allrounder/wide midfielder. Will move inside when off the ball to help out centrally (an area my opponent will crowd as per default), but will nevertheless primarily function as a wide midfielder, seeking to stretch play on the right.

AM/Custom: Šekularac. Role: Free/attacking. His task will be to get on the ball as much as he can, and use both his dribbling and his ingenious playmaking qualities to cause havoc. He's a trouble maker – that is his primary function here. He is a goal threat to an extent too, but I mainly depend on him to create room and opportunities for others. The only sternly tactical instruction he has been given is to drift wide to an extent, stretching the play and targeting my opponents' (defensive) right side. Should my opponents dedicate a DM to marking him, he will frequently drag said player out wide, making the middle of the park less crowded. It should be stressed very clearly that I'm not asking him to play as a winger: It's a free role, but he will operate partly in a wide-ish area of the pitch for the reasons stated above.

SS: Larsson. His function will be two-fold in a very basic sense: 1) He will seek to set up Owen in a scoring position with his brilliant short passing. 2) He will seek to get into finishing positions himself.

CF: Owen. His task is to get on the end of whatever he can get on the end of – and score. Key strengths: Speed and finishing.

General:

I don't expect this to be an easy match. My opponents are very strong in the middle of the park. But then again, so am I. And I believe I have their number in the wide areas (my fullbacks are excellent and I also offer more of a natural wide strength further up the pitch. My opponents offer very little in the latter regard, which could be a problem for them. I believe that my XI is well suited to outsmarting the opposition here, well placed to defend against what they throw at me, and ultimately that I have sufficient goals in me to win what I see as a fairly tight match.

Player profiles (and links).

https://www.redcafe.net/threads/the-third-redcafe-sheep-draft.411575/page-54#post-18495327

 

[Gio]

Good luck gents.

@Marty1968
@bleezy
@Chesterlestreet

 

[RedTiger]

Tough match-up. Both are equally matched so I'm going to wait until the page fills with some posts before I vote.

 

[Marty1968]

Very tight match in my view but think this comes down to which team can control the ball in the middle of the park and our midfield three will have too much energy for Blanchflower and Mullery. They can't mark all three of them and so will mean either Wright has to step to mark Ballack or Mendieta will be dragged infield to help out.

Mullery being the defensive minded of Chester's to midfielders will also be forced to track back to try and stop Zola getting on the ball (either that or Junior will have to move in to mark him. This will give Srna the space in front of him to overlap and get plenty of service to Fontaine and any other scraps on the edge of the box will be pounced on by either Zola, Ballack or Baros.

I don't see Larsson being that effective against my centre back pairing. Yes Owen's pace is a threat but Koeman and Segarra were both extremely clever defenders who were, most of the time, one step ahead of strikers they came up against.

Tight one but i'd fancy our hardworking team to win the midfield battle and come out marginally on top.

 

[Enigma_87]

Very tough matchup between 2 hardworking sides. Can't make my mind up yet, I'll wait for a bit of input from both managers. I think Chester has better width and Junior will link better with Sekularac and has the better defensive line out of both teams. I kinda lean towards Chester win with a narrow score but Marty's side is pretty solid and due to the extra man advantage he'll probably win the midfield battle, although I'm not sure how Toninho will pair up with Cambiasso. IMO the key for this match is both team's attack. I'm not sure how Larsson and Owen will work together. Larsson in that position is great but if he has a striker like Sutton, Batistuta, Van Basten or Shearer type. Marty's attack is pretty good and I think Fontaine and Zola will link well, however I'm a bit unsure about Baros in that inside left role.

Will wait for a bit of a feedback however from both managers. Very close IMO.

 

[Edgar Allan Pillow]

I think Chester has better width and Junior will link better with Sekularac

I don't think Junior is that type of fullback. I recall him moving into the midfield and assisting in making plays there and not a up/down flank owning fullback. More a Breitner than a Facchetti. I'm not sure on his providing width consistently throughout.

 

[The Stain]

I don't see Larsson being that effective against my centre back pairing. Yes Owen's pace is a threat but Koeman and Segarra were both extremely clever defenders who were, most of the time, one step ahead of strikers they came up against.

I'm not sure how Larsson and Owen will work together. Larsson in that position is great but if he has a striker like Sutton, Batistuta, Van Basten or Shearer type.

Henrik Larsson was an extremely smart footballer. He didn't need a targetman next to him. If he played with a runner next to him he'd simply take on more of the targetmans roles himself. He was awesome in the air and his movement was so clever.

Never done this before but i'll vote Chester simply because he has Henke.

 

[Marty1968]

Very tough matchup between 2 hardworking sides. Can't make my mind up yet, I'll wait for a bit of input from both managers. I think Chester has better width and Junior will link better with Sekularac and has the better defensive line out of both teams. I kinda lean towards Chester win with a narrow score but Marty's side is pretty solid and due to the extra man advantage he'll probably win the midfield battle, although I'm not sure how Toninho will pair up with Cambiasso. IMO the key for this match is both team's attack. I'm not sure how Larsson and Owen will work together. Larsson in that position is great but if he has a striker like Sutton, Batistuta, Van Basten or Shearer type. Marty's attack is pretty good and I think Fontaine and Zola will link well, however I'm a bit unsure about Baros in that inside left role.

Will wait for a bit of a feedback however from both managers. Very close IMO.

Chester is likely to need either Junior, Mendieta or Sekularac to help out in the middle of the park and this will drastically affect his ability to play down the wings (where admittedly our team isn't the strongest). Don't think Chester has the players to capitalize on this weakness though.

 

[Marty1968]

Henrik Larsson was an extremely smart footballer. He didn't need a targetman next to him. If he played with a runner next to him he'd simply take on more of the targetmans roles himself. He was awesome in the air and his movement was so clever.

Never done this before but i'll vote Chester simply because he has Henke.

Awesome in the air possibly but he's up against Koeman, Segarra, Ballack and Cerezo at any set pieces and don't see them giving too many free headers.

 

[Marty1968]

I don't think Junior is that type of fullback. I recall him moving into the midfield and assisting in making plays there and not a up/down flank owning fullback. More a Breitner than a Facchetti. I'm not sure on his providing width consistently throughout.

Exactly. He won't provide the width as he'll be forced to tuck in to cover Zola or help out in midfield.

 

[The Stain]

Awesome in the air possibly but he's up against Koeman, Segarra, Ballack and Cerezo at any set pieces and don't see them giving too many free headers.

Not very smart to man-mark him with 4 players. You'll be exposed elsewhere

 

[Enigma_87]

I don't think Junior is that type of fullback. I recall him moving into the midfield and assisting in making plays there and not a up/down flank owning fullback. More a Breitner than a Facchetti. I'm not sure on his providing width consistently throughout.

Yeah but as far as I know it was in his late years? I think either Breitner or Facchetti type will work for Chester in that position. But yeah I agree he's more into the Breitner mold out of the two.

Henrik Larsson was an extremely smart footballer. He didn't need a targetman next to him. If he played with a runner next to him he'd simply take on more of the targetmans roles himself. He was awesome in the air and his movement was so clever.

Never done this before but i'll vote Chester simply because he has Henke.

Oh for sure, he's very versatile and natural goalscorer. I think he'd work better with a targetman or at least striker that compliments him or at least have partner with more physical presence in the box, although he's also an excellent header of the ball.

Chester is likely to need either Junior, Mendieta or Sekularac to help out in the middle of the park and this will drastically affect his ability to play down the wings (where admittedly our team isn't the strongest). Don't think Chester has the players to capitalize on this weakness though.

I think it will be more Mendieta rather than the left flank. I'm not sure how he'll set up in game, but IMO he'll utilize that left side more with Sekularac being the creative player up the field.

 

[Marty1968]

Yeah but as far as I know it was in his late years? I think either Breitner or Facchetti type will work for Chester in that position. But yeah I agree he's more into the Breitner mold out of the two.


Oh for sure, he's very versatile and natural goalscorer. I think he'd work better with a targetman or at least striker that compliments him or at least have partner with more physical presence in the box, although he's also an excellent header of the ball.

I just don't see Larsson being that much of a threat against Koeman and Segarra, with Cambiasso filling the whole in front of the two of them. Yes he was a great striker but able to get the better of Koeman at his peak? I don't think so.

 

[The Stain]

I just don't see Larsson being that much of a threat against Koeman and Segarra, with Cambiasso filling the whole in front of the two of them. Yes he was a great striker but able to get the better of Koeman at his peak? I don't think so.

You've clearly never watched him play. Go watch a compilation of his goals and look at his movements. Such an under-rated player because he chose to stay at Celtic. Sir Alex wanted to sign him around the turn of the century, how differently people would assess his career had he made the switch then. He just couldn't, he loved Celtic too much.

“We acquired a real aristocrat, for a two-month spell at any rate. Jim Lawlor, United’s chief scout, pointed out to us that it was a waste for Henrik Larsson to be playing in Sweden when he still had so much to offer.

On arrival at United, he seemed a bit of a cult figure with our players. They would say his name in awed tones. For a man of 35, his receptiveness to information on the coaching side was amazing.

At every session he was rapt. He wanted to listen to Carlos Queiroz, the tactics lectures, he was into every nuance of what we did. In training he was superb, his movement, his positional play. His three goals for us was no measure of his contribution.

In his last game in our colours at Middlesbrough we were winning 2-1 and Henrik went back to play in midfield and ran his balls off. On his return to the dressing room, all the players stood up and applauded him and the staff joined in. It takes some player to make that kind of impact in two months.

Cult status can vanish in two minutes if a player isn’t doing his job yet Henrik retained that aura. He looked a natural Man United player with his movement and courage. He also had a great spring for a little lad.”

Well, he signed for Barca and was awesome. Came on as a sub v Arsenal in the 06' CL final and assisted both goals.

Koeman won't stand a chance.

 

[Šjor Bepo]

like the look of chesters team, he has enough creativity and firepower up front and Mendieta gives that edge over m/b team as his role is vital here. This team was crying for a right midfielder and chester got it spot on, gives the team nice balance and will ensure that the team has enough numbers in midfield against this opposition.

Dont like marty and bleezy team, shame as there is few players that i love like Zola and Cambiasso + Fontaine looks fantastic on little footage that i found. Think that the team lacks creativity. Fontaine and Zola would had to do to much on their own as there is a serious lack of creativity behind them and when you consider that there is no direct/"easy" route through wingers or just quality dribblers i think thats a major problem. Specially as their defence looks shaky and i can see Larsson and Owen getting a better of them.

 

[Marty1968]

like the look of chesters team, he has enough creativity and firepower up front and Mendieta gives that edge over m/b team as his role is vital here. This team was crying for a right midfielder and chester got it spot on, gives the team nice balance and will ensure that the team has enough numbers in midfield against this opposition.

Dont like marty and bleezy team, shame as there is few players that i love like Zola and Cambiasso + Fontaine looks fantastic on little footage that i found. Think that the team lacks creativity. Fontaine and Zola would had to do to much on their own as there is a serious lack of creativity behind them and when you consider that there is no direct/"easy" route through wingers or just quality dribblers i think thats a major problem. Specially as their defence looks shaky and i can see Larsson and Owen getting a better of them.

Ballack was one of the best attacking midfielders in the 2000's....its just a shame he wasn't surrounded by great German players in 2002 and 2006 otherwise they would've won one of those world cups. He pretty much single handedly carried the German team from 2000 for a good 5 or 6 years. He created plenty and would create plenty here with cambiasso and Cerezo being able to put in the hard graft behind him,

 

[Gio]

Very tight match in my view but think this comes down to which team can control the ball in the middle of the park and our midfield three will have too much energy for Blanchflower and Mullery. They can't mark all three of them and so will mean either Wright has to step to mark Ballack or Mendieta will be dragged infield to help out.

There's plenty of energy in Mullery, Mendieta and even Blanchflower was considered a decent all-rounder for all his playmaking talents. That said, I rate Cerezo highly - he doesn't always get the recognition he deserves here. I do worry about the singular threat of Owen's pace against the comparatively pedestrian Koeman.

 

[bleezy]

I'm not entirely sure on Chester's tactics as he hasn't outlined them in much detail, but relying on going wide a lot means Chester is pretty dependent on his strikers to do the business in the air, which I'm not convinced they'd get that much joy.

We're set up to be solid through the middle, with Cerezo and Cambiasso more than capable of stopping the supply lines I think. Ballack can also drop back, but gives a very real goal threat the other side. It'd be a tight game, but I think we could nick this one through being hard to score against and having some real quality going forward.

Zola feeding a natural finisher like Fontaine, or drawing a midfielder out of position for Ballack to surge through, and I think we'd get a goal or two in this game.

 

[Chesterlestreet]

Nice and tight, as predicted.

Some points:

* I figured Zola would work the left side here, allowing him to cut in and use his right peg - so I'll definitely concede that Júnior will have to worry about him to an extent (as Beszonov was supposed to in my write-up). However: Zola isn't a winger by any normal standards. There is not much width in M/B's side - and even less width of high quality (with respect to Srna and Winterburn, they won't be able to provide what's necessary here - and they aren't able to combine with anyone playing in a proper wide role.

* With Zola targeting Júnior's side, Beszonov is considerably freer to venture forward and combine with Mendieta, making my right side a threat my opponents will have to worry about to a far greater extent than any wide threat they can offer against me.

* I disagree that Seekularac will have to drop down in the middle, as stated above. He isn't expected to do any lifting here, and he doesn't have to. In defensive mode, I have Mendieta (whose game is ideally suited to this) cutting in - and Junior cutting in from the left. The overcrowded central area is something I'm prepared to handle, body wise. And quality wise it is lacking in terms of creativity, as has been pointed out. Not in terms of quality as such - but in terms of creativity. What M/B need to worry about is keeping Šelularac from targeting Srna (as he is instructed to) - because there's a disaster waiting to happen. There is no way Srna will be able to handle Šekularac, one of the best dribblers in football history, on his own. And his central defenders will have the extremely clever Larsson - and the extremely fast Owen - to worry about.

* I have runners, especially on the break, which will cause considerable problems for my opponent here whenever Blanchflower is on the ball.

* Regarding Júnior: I've already stated that his natural game involves drifting centrally in one way or the other, and he isn't a Facchetti style player. But I don't need a Facchetti style player in order to gain the necessary advantage here in terms of having a more plausible route to goal on the flanks (and my main threat in terms of pure wide play lies on the right anyway).

 

[Šjor Bepo]

Ballack was one of the best attacking midfielders in the 2000's....its just a shame he wasn't surrounded by great German players in 2002 and 2006 otherwise they would've won one of those world cups. He pretty much single handedly carried the German team from 2000 for a good 5 or 6 years. He created plenty and would create plenty here with cambiasso and Cerezo being able to put in the hard graft behind him,

i dont rate Ballack, specially as a creative force.....

 

[Chesterlestreet]

I'm not entirely sure on Chester's tactics as he hasn't outlined them in much detail, but relying on going wide a lot means Chester is pretty dependent on his strikers to do the business in the air, which I'm not convinced they'd get that much joy.

This point strikes me as slightly odd.

1. I'm not sure why I would need to rely on my strikers doing the business in the air. To an extent, sure, as will always be the case (crossing from the right is a feature we could see here), but in spite of not being powerhouses as such in the air, both Larsson and Owen are perfectly capable of netting a header.

2. Your CB duo surely isn't of the sort you'd positively highlight in terms of aerial strength? If anything I'd say they would struggle considerably if I were to launch a series of aerial battles here (which I won't - but again, both Larsson and Owen are dangerous in terms of getting on the end of whatever crosses might find their way into your box).

 

[The Stain]

but in spite of not being powerhouses as such in the air, both Larsson and Owen are perfectly capable of netting a header.

I've already written it but.. Larsson was excellent in the air.

Spoiler: This beaut

Spoiler: All Celtic goals. Notice how many of them are headers..

 

[Gio]

i dont rate Ballack, specially as a creative force.....

Poor Ballack, he doesn't seem to get the recognition a player who was so influential - and often as a single-handed Roy-of-the-Rovers style force - deserves. What a penetrating and archetypal box-to-box midfielder he was at Leverkusen.

 

[Chesterlestreet]

...but relying on going wide a lot...

This isn't really how I see it.

It's more like this: I have an edge in terms of the wide threat. The side as such isn't set up to attack relentlessly down the flanks: My main strength, just like yours, is central. This I consider to be a weakness of both sides, actually - as I mentioned in the other match thread. But I have a genuine wide aspect to my game to a larger degree than you have (the right flank gives me the chance to launch fairly standard fullback/wide man combos at you - and Sekularac is instructed to hassle your right back with his trickery every chance he gets).

So, it isn't a question of me leaving the middle of the park to you - and focusing solely on attacking down the flanks. My contention here is that I'll be able to contain your central threat. Being fully aware of it, I have set up to contain it, you could even say. But unlike you I do possess a genuine threat from out wide - one which you will ultimately not be able to handle.

 

[Chesterlestreet]

I've already written it but.. Larsson was excellent in the air.

Indeed. What I meant by him not being a powerhouse was simply in terms of style, or type. He was brilliant in the air and had one hell of a leap on him.

As I said, I find this focus on aerial play odd: Of the two central defenders Larsson and Owen have to contend with here, Koeman should actually be the strongest in the air - and he is hardly what you'd call brilliant in that regard. Competent at best. For my money he wouldn't stand a chance in a straight-up aerial duel with Larsson.

 

[Chesterlestreet]

BTW, I haven't fully updated the profile post linked to above due to some technical difficulties. Will try to add something there by and by.

 

[Marty1968]

i dont rate Ballack, specially as a creative force.....

What ridiculous comment. He's totally underrated because of the bang average players he played with for club and country when at Leverkusen and fr Germany. He carried Leverkusen to the champions league final

 

[Enigma_87]

I find it odd suggesting Chester's team will cross the ball much. It's pretty much based on counter attacking football with fast and pacy players capable of punishing the opponent.

I find it a lot similarities in terms of width with our Nedved/Stojkovic combo in this team there is Mendieta/Sekularac. Mendieta can provide midfield cover as he's a hardworker and also can play centrally. Larsson, Sekularac and Owen are great for counter attacking choice and would rely to isolate those three on one on one to create advantage. He has the quality in attack to sneak a goal, depends whether his defence unit can contain Fontaine and Zola. Ballack IMO is a very good playmaker, I'm not sure what Baros role will be tho..

 

[Šjor Bepo]

What ridiculous comment. He's totally underrated because of the bang average players he played with for club and country when at Leverkusen and fr Germany. He carried Leverkusen to the champions league final

ridiculous or not its my opinion, im fairly certain you dont rate someone that i rate so that would probably be ridiculous in my eyes.

 

[Gio]

I've already written it but.. Larsson was excellent in the air.

Spoiler: This beaut

Spoiler: All Celtic goals. Notice how many of them are headers..

Aye he was outstanding in the air. Like this one shortly after breaking his jaw.



Or this classic diving header at Euro 2004



Him and Owen were brought up on a diet of British/Scandinavian football spending much of their time getting on the end of crosses.

He's still a Celtic cnut mind.

 

[Chesterlestreet]

He's totally underrated because of the bang average players he played with for club and country when at Leverkusen and fr Germany. He carried Leverkusen to the champions league final

I consider him an obvious threat here, as suggested in the write-up.

For me, your problem is a lack of creativity among all them bodies you have in the middle. Neither Cerezo or Cambiasso are likely to set up Ballack with the sort of inventive, open-up-the-play passing you'd ideally want here. They're both tidy passers, but tidy isn't really what you want in this regard.

You can crowd the middle of the park - but you don't have many outlets. When you're on the ball, I'm well suited to simply falling back, having both Mendieta and Júnior join the party in the middle, plus Bezsonov performing a purely defensive function, which he is more than capable of. I have the defensively sound CM pairing of Mullery (who is especially tasked with tracking Ballack when this is required) and Blanchflower - and my CB pairing is top class, nothing short of it.

In terms of attacking prowess, you rely to a large extent on Fontaine being serviced. He's a brilliant and dangerous player, but you need to create an imbalance of one kind or another in this congested middle scenario in order to turn him loose. You have Ballack, and you have Zola. You also have two defensive midfielders - and Milan Baros.

You need an edge. I don't think you have one.

I have two: 1. The ability to hit you devastatingly on the counter on the right. 2. Šekularac targeting the right side of your defence (as mentioned in the write-up). How do you deal with this? Srna is not a strong player defensively.

 

[Chesterlestreet]

Bloody Internet connection is playing up so I can't post any clips (takes ages to load), but I'm sure you'll find "Michael Owen + early career + goals" easily enough:

Point being that lest anyone should be in doubt, the version of Michael Owen I'm fielding here is the earliest one. We can debate whether he deserved to win the Ballon (he didn't, for my money), but it's a fact that he did - and it wasn't a pure coincidence either. For a few years following his breakthrough, he was one of the deadliest strikers on the planet.

I also think that his particular strengths - extreme speed combined with clever movements in the box - makes him a very well suited partner for Larsson (who excelled at finding openings in tight spaces, among other things). He is also a particularly apt striker to have for a side that may very well end up winning as a result of a well timed counter attack (and my side is just such a one).

 

[Edgar Allan Pillow]

Very close match.

I'm surprised Blanchflower is playing and @Annahnomoss hasn't posted

Mullery/Blanchflower has the right mix of toughness and creativity to feed that versatile front line. though I'd prefer a more traditional fullback to Junior in this setup.
On the flip side, Cambiasso, Cerezo is just rock solid shield, though he really should flip them around. Cambiasso is better on the left imo. Ballack is underrated, though his ability to ghost into the box late will definitely earn him goals.

Baros tips this in faour of Chester imo.

 

[Enigma_87]

Very close match.

I'm surprised Blanchflower is playing and @Annahnomoss hasn't posted

Mullery/Blanchflower has the right mix of toughness and creativity to feed that versatile front line. though I'd prefer a more traditional fullback to Junior in this setup.
On the flip side, Cambiasso, Cerezo is just rock solid shield, though he really should flip them around. Cambiasso is better on the left imo. Ballack is underrated, though his ability to ghost into the box late will definitely earn him goals.

Baros tips this in faour of Chester imo.

I'm not sure a traditional fullback will provide enough width which Chester needs. I have no issues with Junior in this setup. His weakness is he'll be outnumbered in midfield, but either way he's setup for a counter attacking football so he's content to losing the midfield battle. Cerezo is top class, but IMO needs a box to box midfielder like Robbo/Keano/Rijkaard etc type so that he can also contribute in attack, because I can see only Ballack and Zola being the creative force in this setup with Baros and Fontaine as consumers...

Baros tipped the scale for me as well - I'm not sure what his role is in his setup and I'm not sure where the goals will come from. It's an even match for me with one goal being the difference.

 

[Marty1968]

Think Baros has cost us here but had to play him after we ended up with Spearing as well. If we'd gone with Czech's instead of Hungary in the first round we would have snagged Masopust and it would've all been so much different.

Think Chester has a solid team but can see Ballack having quite a lot of space here to run at the back four. with Zola's magic touch and vision alongside him and Fontaine's killer instinct I'd fancy we'd score one or two. Baros is a weak link but can't be that weak given that he was voted for the Ballon D'Or. Srna's delivery from the right has been overlooked a little here in my view. Not a world beater but a very solid fullback who knows how to attack and provides excellent service to strikers.

I think Ballack has been underestimated here. Ballack was "the lone shining light in a leaden era". What could he do with Torsten Frings and Carsten Jancker as team-mates for the nationalmannschaft. Had he been in a team with some of the German greats of the past alongside him, he'd be held in much higher regard now.

 

[Edgar Allan Pillow]

What ridiculous comment. He's totally underrated because of the bang average players he played with for club and country when at Leverkusen and fr Germany. He carried Leverkusen to the champions league final

I don't think that was a ridiculous comment. He is a very capable player, highly technical, intelligent, physically aggressive and has an uncanny knack to be in the box and score goal...but creative is not a word I'd use to describe him. In a midfield 3 (or even in a midfield 2) he'd be a perfect and potent fit, but I'd stop shy of playing him as a #10 AM type.

 

[Joga Bonito]

Chester edges this imo but for all of Koeman's flaws off the ball, which have been rightfully pointed out I should add, his creative talents have criminally gone under the radar in this match-up. Esp given the ongoing discussion about Marty's side's creativity and playmaking capabilities.

 

[Marty1968]

Chester edges this imo but for all of Koeman's flaws off the ball, which have been rightfully pointed out I should add, his creative talents have criminally gone under the radar in this match-up. Esp given the ongoing discussion about Marty's side's creativity and playmaking capabilities.

Absolutely agree...and a major attacking threat! 193 goals in his career is just insane for a defender!!! He's the highest scoring defender ever in top flight leagues