Thiago Alcântara | 2016/17 Performances

Invictus said:
He was exceptional in the 2011 U-21 European Championship, too - despite being one of the youngest players in the setup. Started watching the Spanish team because we were being linked with De Gea, but ended up being mesmerized by the Martínez-Herrera-Thiago midfield that dominated every team they faced - and ended up winning the tourney with goals from Thiago and Herrera in the final vs Shaqiri, Sommer, Mehmedi and Xhaka's Switzerland.

vs. Sturridge, Jones, Smalling, Welbeck, Walker, Cleverley in the Group Stages:



The rest of the squad wasn't shabby, either - Mata, Parejo, Azpilicueta, Adrián, Muniain. :drool:
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Jones and Smalling were excellent in that tournament IIRC.
 
He is overrated. I got caught up in the hype, after 2-3 good month, but in the end I am not particularly impressed by his performance this season. He is a very elegant player, but also incredible inefficient when it matters. Apparently fans think that his performance has been great, but he was imo nowhere near peak Schweinsteiger/Kroos/Vidal or even Van Bommel when it comes to actually making a difference. Nvm some of our midfield generals that played previously for the club.
 
He is still a bit overrated, because he only played half a good season. The first half was the same as ever, pleasing to the eye but very unproductive. However, if he continues to play like he did since january, he's class.
What's still incredibly frustrating at times though, is as @Mourinhonista mentioned, his short passing. It's often very unprecise and it drives me mad sometimes.
 
Piratesoup said:
His defensive contribution is so underrated.
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Most interceptions in Europe. To have that along with his ability.. he's been a joy to watch this season. Surely Bayern's next midfield general, and a bit different this time from Schweini, Matthaus, van Bommel for a change.
 
Red Indian Chief Torn Rubber said:
I will forever detest Moyes for screwing up that deal for him
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Did he really have a chance though? I know Pep came weeks later but Man United with Moyes as manager doesn't seem attractive at all to a Barça player. I doubt he'd even have left if it weren't for Pep.

Besides, after what Moyes did here, I'm sorta glad he didn't come. We could have really fecked up his career.
 
SirMattBugsby said:
Did he really have a chance though? I know Pep came weeks later but Man United with Moyes as manager doesn't seem attractive at all to a Barça player. I doubt he'd even have left if it weren't for Pep.

Besides, after what Moyes did here, I'm sorta glad he didn't come. We could have really fecked up his career.
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Even after the Bayern move, Thiago said he waited upon an offer from United. Moyes dithered and dallied then decided to chase Fabregas instead
Even Pep was still surprised no one had paid his clause yet so moved for him mid the window. Moyes had all the chance to get him.
 
Red Indian Chief Torn Rubber said:
Even after the Bayern move, Thiago said he waited upon an offer from United. Moyes dithered and dallied then decided to chase Fabregas instead
Even Pep was still surprised no one had paid his clause yet so moved for him mid the window. Moyes had all the chance to get him.
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If true, Moyes is just the worst person of all time.
 
Red Indian Chief Torn Rubber said:
Even after the Bayern move, Thiago said he waited upon an offer from United. Moyes dithered and dallied then decided to chase Fabregas instead
Even Pep was still surprised no one had paid his clause yet so moved for him mid the window. Moyes had all the chance to get him.
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Haha well for Thiago's sake, I'm glad he didn't. He prefers 'British' style of players anyway, would tell Thiago to get stuck in and then drop him for Fellaini anyway.
 
KN5 said:
If true, Moyes is just the worst person of all time.
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The fact that Moyes could have had Thiago and LVG could have had Kroos.

We would have had a midfield of Pogba, Thiago, Kroos. Just let that sink in for a little bit.
 
Adam-Utd said:
The fact that Moyes could have had Thiago and LVG could have had Kroos.

We would have had a midfield of Pogba, Thiago, Kroos. Just let that sink in for a little bit.
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Life could've been so perfect, dammit I'm so sad now.
 
Adam-Utd said:
The fact that Moyes could have had Thiago and LVG could have had Kroos.

We would have had a midfield of Pogba, Thiago, Kroos. Just let that sink in for a little bit.
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We wouldn't have bought Pogba then - if we had Thiago and Kroos we would've opted for a midfield destroyer
 
harms said:
We wouldn't have bought Pogba then - if we had Thiago and Kroos we would've opted for a midfield destroyer
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And Moyes would've likely survived -- even he couldn't have fecked up with a Kroos/Thiago midfield. Alternate timelines are always the scariest.
 
Adam-Utd said:
The fact that Moyes could have had Thiago and LVG could have had Kroos.

We would have had a midfield of Pogba, Thiago, Kroos. Just let that sink in for a little bit.
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That's some midfield.

But you have to doubt it we had Thiago, would LVG had signed Kroos, and would we still have gone for Pogba?

But admittedly. That midfield trio beats what we currently have by some distance!

Kroos is the one for me, he is so good, rarely puts a foot wrong. Thiago is great, but a little inconsistent for the top top level, but again he's miles ahead of what we currently have!
 
DWelbz19 said:
And Moyes would've likely survived -- even he couldn't have fecked up with a Kroos/Thiago midfield. Alternate timelines are always the scariest.
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Think you are underestimating Mr Moyes there. He would find a way.
 
Oldyella said:
Think you are underestimating Mr Moyes there. He would find a way.
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Where there's a Moyes there's a way (to feck it all up).

I only started paying attention to Thiago around the time of De Gea's signed ball and have been impressed with his work at Bayern. For what it's worth I don't think his move here would have worked out, I think in the spirit of that timeless aphorism set out above under Moyes he would have been misused, demoralised and quietly moved on.
 
Craig Ward said:
That's some midfield.

But you have to doubt it we had Thiago, would LVG had signed Kroos, and would we still have gone for Pogba?

But admittedly. That midfield trio beats what we currently have by some distance!

Kroos is the one for me, he is so good, rarely puts a foot wrong. Thiago is great, but a little inconsistent for the top top level, but again he's miles ahead of what we currently have!
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Who knows, purely hypothetical of course. It's just ridiculous how we have passed on players like that for 2 managers that haven't lasted with us 3 years. Perhaps we really do need a DOF with a bit more foresight?

Did LVG really think Schneiderlin/Schweinsteiger/Fellaini would do a better job than Kroos? Did Moyes really think Rooney was a better CM than Thiago.. :wenger:
 
Craig Ward said:
That's some midfield.

But you have to doubt it we had Thiago, would LVG had signed Kroos, and would we still have gone for Pogba?

But admittedly. That midfield trio beats what we currently have by some distance!

Kroos is the one for me, he is so good, rarely puts a foot wrong. Thiago is great, but a little inconsistent for the top top level, but again he's miles ahead of what we currently have!
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Thiago's work off the ball is highly underrated. He had the most interceptions in Europe's top five leagues this season. And yes, that's including defenders. Five interceptions per game in a possession-heavy Bayern team. Crazy..

I agree Kroos marginally shades it in possession and attack, but Thiago looked more complete this season. Ironically, it's his attacking output that he needs to improve on.
 
BlueCelery said:
Apm4Ph.jpg


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:lol:
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Based on those stats, how is Messi worse off than Neymar?
 
SirMattBugsby said:
Enjoy.. :drool: :(

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A brilliant player and a worthy heir of midfield king after Modric steps down. He is, actually, already there if he keeps his level of performance from last season.
You must feel sorry when you know he could end up here and whoever pulled the plug on this transfer was not in his right mind. A second worst decision that transfer window, only behind Barcelona decision to sell him and keep Cesc. Never wanted a player after Ronaldinho as much as him.

Anyway, kinda a player you just enjoy watching. Hope that injuries are behind him, that's the only thing that could stop him as he is now in his best years.
 
Ubermensch said:
Neymar's chance creation has been insane this season iirc
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I'm just saying based on THOSE stats, you'd think it would be Messi, he's ahead in almost everything, and miles ahead in terms of goals in less minutes.
 
SirMattBugsby said:
Thiago's work off the ball is highly underrated. He had the most interceptions in Europe's top five leagues this season. And yes, that's including defenders. Five interceptions per game in a possession-heavy Bayern team. Crazy..

I agree Kroos marginally shades it in possession and attack, but Thiago looked more complete this season. Ironically, it's his attacking output that he needs to improve on.
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He does not in attack - Kroos might do more shots from a wide area but Thiago has a much better eye for the pass and the movement of other players. Kroos masses of assists mainly come from set-piece situations in a team that has the players to convert them. He is good in this - but that highly depends on the players in the box. (Kroos was always good in delivering starting with his first match at Bayern - but you can see through the years for Bayern, Germany and the Real how it depends on having the power in the box)

And whereas Kroos loves to ball watch when losing the ball or when others do - Thiago usually is not.

Kroos stabilizes your match and is the passmaster - Thiago is both better offensively and defensively. I do not think you can really compare them.

--------------------------------

Why is Neymar better than Messi in the whoscored-rating even with so much goals and assists? Because whoscored's in my eyes favours dribblings too much and Neymar has a better defensive contribution.
 
Jim Beam said:
A brilliant player and a worthy heir of midfield king after Modric steps down. He is, actually, already there if he keeps his level of performance from last season.
You must feel sorry when you know he could end up here and whoever pulled the plug on this transfer was not in his right mind. A second worst decision that transfer window, only behind Barcelona decision to sell him and keep Cesc. Never wanted a player after Ronaldinho as much as him.

Anyway, kinda a player you just enjoy watching. Hope that injuries are behind him, that's the only thing that could stop him as he is now in his best years.
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No, he is not there. Not even close. Modric is one of Real's best players especially in big matches and plays fairly consistently on the highest level. He even performed when Real was playing with a midfield of Kroos+Modric (which is just plane stupid).
Thiago has done the square root of jack-shit for Bayern. He was a nailed on starter for 1 out of 4 seasons despite having Pep as manager for three years. Even Pep started to bench him in the end despite him being fit. Last year was probably Bayern's worst year (performance wise) since LvG was sacked. Thiago looked fancy in the league against smaller teams, but disappeared when it mattered despite playing in his favorite role/position. He is not to blame for other players (lack of) performance, but I really don't get this over-the-top-praise. He is still just a talent. If he wants to be seen as one of the best midfielders in the world he needs to live up to the (justified) hype. At the moments he is quite far away from deserving this kind of praise.
 
Craig Ward said:
That's some midfield.

But you have to doubt it we had Thiago, would LVG had signed Kroos, and would we still have gone for Pogba?

But admittedly. That midfield trio beats what we currently have by some distance!

Kroos is the one for me, he is so good, rarely puts a foot wrong. Thiago is great, but a little inconsistent for the top top level, but again he's miles ahead of what we currently have!
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I'd keep Herrera over taking Thiago at the moment. Thiago's getting benched and struggling for consistency despite playing in his favourite position for a team who walk their league each season. He really couldn't have an easier situation and he's not doing much with it. Herrera on the other hand is playing out of his skin, consistently, for a team with plenty of problems (half the time his midfield partner is Fellaini.) He may not be as sexy, or have the same sort of raw talent, but he's a more useful player right now.

Plus he makes more sense as a partner for Pogba.

Obviously it goes without saying that I'd bite your hand (and arm and shoulder) off to have either Thiago or Kroos as our third midfielder. Not that I don't love that microphone-headed Belgian...
 
PedroMendez said:
No, he is not there. Not even close. Modric is one of Real's best players especially in big matches and plays fairly consistently on the highest level. He even performed when Real was playing with a midfield of Kroos+Modric (which is just plane stupid).
Thiago has done the square root of jack-shit for Bayern. He was a nailed on starter for 1 out of 4 seasons despite having Pep as manager for three years. Even Pep started to bench him in the end despite him being fit. Last year was probably Bayern's worst year (performance wise) since LvG was sacked. Thiago looked fancy in the league against smaller teams, but disappeared when it mattered despite playing in his favorite role/position. He is not to blame for other players (lack of) performance, but I really don't get this over-the-top-praise. He is still just a talent. If he wants to be seen as one of the best midfielders in the world he needs to live up to the (justified) hype. At the moments he is quite far away from deserving this kind of praise.
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Once again, an excessively harsh verdict after the genuinely great season Thiago just delivered for us. I don't get it.
 
Brightonian said:
I'd keep Herrera over taking Thiago at the moment. Thiago's getting benched and struggling for consistency despite playing in his favourite position for a team who walk their league each season. He really couldn't have an easier situation and he's not doing much with it. Herrera on the other hand is playing out of his skin, consistently, for a team with plenty of problems (half the time his midfield partner is Fellaini.) He may not be as sexy, or have the same sort of raw talent, but he's a more useful player right now.

Plus he makes more sense as a partner for Pogba.
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The only reason I can even remotely understand you saying this is if you didn't watch Thiago regularly this season. We're praising Herrera for his defensive work, yet even there Thiago was better this season. His tackling and defensive reading of the game is better than Herrera.

Cristiano Lell said:
Once again, an excessively harsh verdict after the genuinely great season Thiago just delivered for us. I don't get it.
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Neither do I. I can understand comparing him to Modric is premature, but at least appreciate what the guy has done this season.
 
Pogba is the best midfielder in the world period
 
SirMattBugsby said:
Neither do I. I can understand comparing him to Modric is premature, but at least appreciate what the guy has done this season.
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So what did he do? He performed reliably in the league against most teams. Yet it was one of the weakest seasons by Bayern and the competition. Overall the quality of the Bundesliga was rather poor last year. Bayern rarely played exciting football either. Additionally, we lost in the semis against Dortmund and the CL against the first top team after finishing second in the group.
It was hardly a great season by Bayerns standards and with few exceptions (Lewandowski, Lahm, Alaba, Thiago) nobody really performed up to his best. So Thiago was one of the best players during an slighly disappointing season. Thats nice and all, but doesn't make you worldclass. There were various midfielders in 16/17 who had better seasons.
But even if you look just in bayerns recent past you'll find various midfielders who had vastly stronger seasons. You don't have to look further than 15/16, when Vidal carried the team on his back many times. Something that Thiago never did. In how many big games did Thiago stand out during his time in Munich? Not many, especially if we don't count games against Arsenal....
 
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PedroMendez said:
No, he is not there. Not even close. Modric is one of Real's best players especially in big matches and plays fairly consistently on the highest level. He even performed when Real was playing with a midfield of Kroos+Modric (which is just plane stupid).
Thiago has done the square root of jack-shit for Bayern. He was a nailed on starter for 1 out of 4 seasons despite having Pep as manager for three years. Even Pep started to bench him in the end despite him being fit. Last year was probably Bayern's worst year (performance wise) since LvG was sacked. Thiago looked fancy in the league against smaller teams, but disappeared when it mattered despite playing in his favorite role/position. He is not to blame for other players (lack of) performance, but I really don't get this over-the-top-praise. He is still just a talent. If he wants to be seen as one of the best midfielders in the world he needs to live up to the (justified) hype. At the moments he is quite far away from deserving this kind of praise.
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Yeah, I did overrated him a bit but you also underrate him. You forget, though, where Modric was in his age. Just getting recognition in Spurs squad as one of the best midfielders in EPL. Thiago just entered his peak years.
 
PedroMendez said:
So what did he do? He performed reliably in the league against most teams. Yet it was one of the weakest seasons by Bayern and the competition. Overall the quality of the Bundesliga was rather poor last year. Bayern rarely played exciting football either. Additionally, we lost in the semis against Dortmund and the CL against the first top team after finishing second in the group.
It was hardly a great season by Bayerns standards and with few exceptions (Lewandowski, Lahm, Alaba, Thiago) nobody really performed up to his best. So Thiago was on of the best players during an slighly disappointing season. Thats nice and all, but doesn't make you worldclass. There were various midfielders in 16/17 who had better seasons.
But even if you look just in bayerns recent past you'll find various midfielders who had vastly stronger seasons. You don't have to look further than 15/16, when Vidal carried the team on his back many times. Something that Thiago never did. In how many big games did Thiago stand out during his time in Munich? Not many, especially if we don't count games against Arsenal....
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Well, Alaba was really poor (by his and Bayern's standards) for the most of the season.
 
Cristiano Lell said:
Once again, an excessively harsh verdict after the genuinely great season Thiago just delivered for us. I don't get it.
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Which of his central points do you disagree with? Is it fair to say that last year was Bayern's worst year since LvG was sacked? Is it fair to say that multiple midfielders over that period have performed better than Thiago? Is it fair to say that he failed to excel in the really key games?
 
whatwha said:
Such a wonderful, bright player. Makes me angry to think we could have had him.

May Moyes burn in the firey pits of hell, the stupid fecking cnut.
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Yeah, although I can't imagine him under Moyes. He would be probably benched in some games because of lack of physicality with instruction during game time to keep it simple and just bomb the box.
 
I find him to be overrated. Very very good CM but does seem to fade away a bit in big European matches, moreso than others. But time is on his side.
 
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