The Second RedCafe Sheep Draft
- Thread starter Skizzo
- Start date
I'll be turning mine in within the next hour. Just a few more regression analyses to do.
Didn't I say surprises?
Knowing you, I don't think it's going to be pleasant for me!
This is a mindfeck.
I don't really like the formation, personally, but if you want Puskas, Platini and Pirlo all central you have to at least think about 3 at the back.
The problem is the highlighted bit. What the feck for?
You don't imo, but since he got it, I think he can get away with a 4-2-3-1 with the talent he's got!
Anyway if he goes through without a sheep Pirlo is not a bad option to have on the bench. Can do worse.... Like me!
Anything you need Pirlo for Platini would not do antohan, because they are completely different players who play in different positions. It's like comparing Carrick and Mata.
Platini will drop deep the way most #10's occasionally do but it's a casual part of his game and nothing like Pirlo/Xavi/Guardiola or players of that ilk. The majority of the time, he ain't gonna be there and you don't want him there.
The bolded part is the stranger comment though and I'm not sure what you're on about, as Pirlo doesn't play like that. He has never played in a tika taka possession based side and doesn't look to keep possession the way someone like Xavi does.
Indeed if you wanted to be concise, the biggest different between Xavi and Pirlo is that Pirlo was always much more direct. Hogging the ball miles away from Platini is just a daft comment and misrepresents how Pirlo plays. He's always had a tendency to play direct, raking long sweeping passes.
You know Platini scored 9 goals in 5 games at the tip of a diamond in '84 right?
Are you thinking of a diamond with Tardelli? Mmm....
NM hasn't decided yet, but it seems the most obvious option.
With Puskas we wanted a partner next to him who had certain attributes, so two up top was always the idea. Then Platini came along who has played as an AM behind two strikers in a diamond and a 3-5-2, so it does seem the clearest route.
Tbh, I don't think Tardelli is the right fit in a diamond, but it all depends on full backs he chooses.... Let's see.
Come on. That'd make for a boring draft! Discussions were always open on picks before and should continue.I don't think it affects much as your final team and your opponent are not known!
You haven't seen enough Platini, clearly. He would spend entire games playing a similar role to Pirlo, where needed. Usually it was more a case of switching between advanced and deep mode subject to how the game was going. Wanting him there or not is 100% a function of how the game shapes up, the scoreline, etc. That's actually a big part of what made him great, he could switch from #10 to DLP seamlessly in a way neither Mata nor Carrick can. Basically, you have both roles in one player and decided to throw half of him out of the window. Now you have Pirlo and 1/2 Platini, when you could have all that and an entire additional player.
Yes, Pirlo is more direct in his approach, but for him to influence the game, by definition, you need the ball to be in his zone regularly. Milan did precisely that, they didn't hog the ball but didn't play particularly direct, rather patient, and then Pirlo would find the direct opportunity... That's great for a counter-attacking setup, but planning to counter-attack when you have Puskas and Platini is mental.
You already acknowledge yourself that you are looking at a diamond, so you've sacrificed wing-play and the opportunity to put the oppo under sustained pressure for a more controlled approach. If I were your rival I would be loving that because you aren't exploiting Platini and Puskas as well as you could, and before you give me "Platini 1984" may I remind you Fernández was far from a Pirlo type. Why was there no Pirlo type? Because they needed someone to protect the defence, not to ping balls. Whenever France needed someone to perform the Pirlo role, to play a more controlled game and on the counter, Platini would drop deep and perform that role.
I really think you two should respect NM's wish. It's one thing if you discuss your own teams, but it's a bit unfair on NM here.
Why? He is a great fit. All-rounded, capable of covering the flanks (and he did that on a regular basis), a true engine - what's not to like here?
I'm not sure that carre magique and Milan's diamond can be seen as the same formation though. That France team had 3 brilliant playmakers and was incredibly fluid, with Platini playing as a center-forward, in the hole and as a regista, depending on the opposition/situation.
EDIT: sorry, NM. Didn't see your post, it's a fair request and the critique is over the top anyway.
Sorry, hadnn't seen this. Will leave it there, although I have taken up discussing this stuff during the draft rather than making games all about this sort of discussion. That would be more annoying/unfair. In fact, it gives you the benefit of assessing pros and cons and consider that in the remainder of this draft. If you ask me, Pirlo is a great sub for you but not a starter. As opposed to a sheep, he could come very handy if you get hit in one of these "surprises" Skizzo has planned.
I started writing it before dinner, finished and sent without seeing his post.
Don't make a stupid comment like that.
NM is right and it is unfair to him, particularly when your comments have been so unreasonable. He's nothing like Pirlo and you wouldn't want Platini doing Pirlo's job, as it's a waste of what he can do offensively. I've already said that Platini drops deep, as lots of #10's do, but it's not at all the same thing - really it's a ludicrous argument.
Urgh, don't give me Fernandez and start making comparisons to '84 when I've literally just had someone say Tardelli can't play the Tigana role. It's always going to be slightly different but Tardelli is a minor defensive upgrade there and one other midfielder still needs picked.
On Pirlo he didn't need to counter attack, his renaissance at Juve has been more measured than his time in Milan as they look to keep the ball more. Playing direct is still where Pirlo excels and I don't think there's a regista who has better long range passing, so quick transitions to Platini and Puskas is the type of ball he would look to make, in the same way he would play quick releasing passes to Kaka.
Fair enough.
Is there any unpicked quality midfielder left we haven't named today?
Liam Miller.
TBH mate, I took this as an invitation for feedback/wanting to hear more about the migivings people seemed to have, which is actually quite a clever way to go about things with almost the entire draft remaining.As you can see lads, if you say anything bad about Pirlo, Theon gets mad.
Very, very mad.
Now you know why I picked him!
If anything it would be other managers annoyed it hasn't been left to blow up mid-game.
Tiote shits on Pirlo.
Can't question Tardelli in that role. The right full back didn't push forward in attacks in that Zona Mista which meant Tardelli often found himself in that space. He never attacked the furthest flank - rather straight towards goal with some brilliant off the ball runs but Tardelli was extremely comfortable on the dribble too.
He was one of those midfielders who could go on a driving run toward the middle and beat two-three people a la Matthäus and Gascoigne but he didn't do so as often.
And another one, we're clearly on a run.
Block submitted
All right all right, I'll do it after the Golden Globes
It's been common before. Why stop discussing a picked player? We were discuss Schweini before, right? I don't think it's bad at all!
Two solid blocks sent in.
Nothing wrong with discussing the attributes of a picked player - that's pretty much what this is about, after all.
But I take NM's point here: It started to look like a match thread type of discussion, in which the finer points of fielding not just one player but a pair of players were being brought up - and I think it's best to respect that he doesn't want that. Others may feel differently about their own players - but there you go, different strokes for different folks.
Different sheep for different peeps too, not least.
It's a theoretical discussion. There's no way this can be a match day type discussion as we don't know what he'll pick in future or what he'll face in a match.
In fact these discussions only help him pick future players as he's aware of the general thought process here.
If no such discussions, there'll be no posts and the draft part will just get boring as there's nothing else to post on!
No time for research so just picking quickly.
Usually the manager who picked the discussed players is part of it though and doesn't ask to stop.
@MDFC Manager your the only one left to submit, four hours to go.
He's been online like 4 hours ago