Monday, June 16, 2008

PALACIO comes out of nowhere to rescue COCO

It was a busy Father's Day in Argentina, followed by a holliday on Monday (Flag's day is coming on June 20th but the government moves the hollidays to the earliest Monday to make long weekends -as they are called-). Anyway. It's time for me to recap the match between Argentina and Ecuador and see which lessons can (and should) be learned from it.

First of all, a big THANK YOU for choosing Mundo Albiceleste as your place to exchange comments on the game and be in touch with fellow Argentina fans around the world. That means a hell of a lot to John and to me. I enjoyed the comments and the various opinions. It's always great to get your views on everything related with our national team.

I won't do a full match report this time. It'll be more like last time around, when I did a quick easy-to-read bullet-point list.

So, here I go:

  • CRUZ should stay in Milan with his Inter's black and blue shirt. They like him there. He does the job for them there. I don't want to see him again playing for Argentina.
  • Coco BASILE is getting to my nerves. I used to like him a lot. I still like his offensive, attractive style, player-friendly approach to football. But he is letting his stubbornness rule the show and he is becoming a little bit too arrogant when talking to the press (which provide us with the only way we have to hearing what he has to say).
  • His CRUZ in for MASCHERANO substitution was a little bit too much if you ask me. I know we already had GAGO in (he came in to replace an anonymous Maxi RODRIGUEZ) and I know we needed to score, but I think by taking out MASCHERANO, we lost our balance. I'm not saying the goal was GAGO's fault, but there is no doubt, with VERON, RIQUELME (plus MESSI, AGÜERO and CRUZ) we only had GAGO and perhaps ZANETTI as holding midfielders and tracking back was a little bit too difficult.
  • Adding up attacking players, doesn't necessarily translates into scoring goals or even creating chances. It can work or it can really mess up everything. We were a lot closer to ending up seeing a complete mess than of seeing good things.
  • VERON played a great first half (when he played deep in our own half and launched a lot of great long passes) but faded in the second when COCO sent him closer to our strikers.
  • RIQUELME was on an off night. He didn't even take his free-kicks in a good way. He even played short passes to the sides when he had all the tall heading specialists lurking for the ball in the Ecuadorian box. He didn't take control of the ball and he needs it to have an influence on the game.
  • MESSI is in a different class. I still think he is trying too hard to have a great game in Buenos Aires. I don't think he ever played at the Monumental up to the standard he is capable of showing. Maybe that's playing against him and he is too anxious. He showed some great moves but couldn't create chances for himself or the others.
  • AGÜERO tried hard and you have to give him credit for winning that ball in the air and making that assist for PALACIO.
  • ABBONDANZIERI? I don't think he is to blame in Ecuador's goal (which was a beauty of a goal, by the way).
  • DEMICHELIS saw the yellow card and he'll miss the big game in Brazil (Jonathan BOTINELLI has been called up by COCO to replace him but I don't think he'll be anywhere near the starting lineup this Wednesday).
  • PALACIO did what he failed to do at Boca as of late: HE SCORE THE 100% OF HIS CHANCES! Boca fans are very critical of PALACIO's inabilitiy to finish, but he sent the only one he had in his three minutes of action on Sunday and he kept Argentina's unbeaten run of 30 WC Qualifiers in Buenos Aires (the last one? Yep, you guessed it right! It was with COCO on our bench. That famous 0-5 against Colombia in 1993).

35 comments:

John said...

There is one way for MESSI to shine in BA and that is kick Roman out and let him take the playmaker role. Simple as that.

I'm fed up of seeing RIQUELME style of playing. The way it looks like as if he is larger than the team.

I did not see a single initiative from him to help the teams caused in the match against Ecuador.

And this is not like the first time such thing has happens. I've always doubted about his commitment playing for Argentina. its high time that Coco takes away his immunity for the National Team.

Give that role to MESSI. Please remember that this is the same boy that shut the door on Spain so that he can play for the country of his birth. That kind of action speaks of high volume.

Anonymous said...

Thanks Seba, Thanks for your updates.

I am damn sure that we will bit Brazil in next match .

I am not agrred with John acout Roman Riquelme issue. Messi is too small to take that role . Let him learn and then take that role .

I dont want to see Cruz in next match.

Once again thanks for the Updates.

Be posted ..

Viva Argentina.

John said...

Thanks Anonymous for your comment.

To say that MESSI is to small for that role is an understatement.

I agree with you he is still young and he needs to learn. But don't forget that he is also hungry as well.

If Coco does not give him the exposure and experience now then when.

Wait until Roman comes up with another reason that he wants to retire.

Remember, a hungry student without lesson and knowledge to learn is like a house with great furniture minus the roof.

Jaggs said...

I am agree with Jhon, it's neccessary to give chance to new blood. I liked Roman but he doesn't play with heart now now he doesn't bother to run that by he left europe.

Anonymous said...

Me van a perdonar estimados pero seré crítico, sobre todo con lo que me parece más importante en un equipo, y claramente es porque le tengo una estima enorme a la selección argentina y al país en sí, por todo el intercambio que he tenido con él y con su gente.

No soy de Boca ni soy de River ni soy Argentina, pero me gusta Argentina y tengo que decir esto, que se que a alguien le va a doler, pero mi intención no es atacar sino entregar una opinión que al menos no está cegada por el fanatismo...

Argentina se fue afuera del mundial sólo porque Pekerman insistió e insistió en Riquelme. El tipo tiene manejo de la pelota y en los tiros libres la pone con la mano, pero no tiene mentalidad de grande. Argentina se fue afuera por Riquelme. Nunca ligó. Un equipo no puede estar esperando a un jugador que ponga 'él' pase todo el partido porque se pierde 40 pelotas para 1 pase bueno. El deporte no es así. La pelota no se debe perder y Riquelme no entiende eso. Pekerman en el mundial el único partido en que sacó a Riquelme, manejó los hilos el Payasito Aymar y dieron vuelta el partido. ¿porque no usó más a Aymar (y digo aymar porque era el reemplazante, aunque también me gusta pero mucho más) no se explica? Contra Holanda Riquelme fue un desastre y los puntos no valían, ¿cómo no busca alternativas? Entonces llega el partido clave con Alemania, en que nuevamente vemos una tarde oscura de Riquelme y Pekerman (perdido) se decide a cambiarlo faltando minutos (y lo cambia por un delantero) cuando el drama es que no se llegaba más al arco alemán. Pekerman apostó y se cegó por un jugador sin pensar en que todos somos humanos y que si fallamos, en un equipo de estrellas tenemos que tener reemplazantes.

Hasta Saviola fue mucho más que Riquelme, un tipo que no sólo es delantero sino que cuida la pelota, dio pases excelentes en el mundial.

Que quiero decirle a Seba. Para que seguir diciendo que Riquelme estuvo en una noche off. Si falló el penal que clasificaba al Villarreal a la final de la Champions League, si falló en el mundial, si siempre a sido un tipo que tiene magia, pero que no sabe que la pelota no se pierde... los goles se los mete a Chile, a Bolivia, a no se quien....

... no me quiero ir contra Riquelme, un ser humano. Sí quiero ir en contra de la ceguera de no querer ver que Riquelme, no es. Tomen los compactos del mundial... vean cuantas pelotas tomó y cuantas perdió en %, comparenlo con Aymar, con Saviola... no hay punto de comparación. El futbol peca en no usar las estadisticas...

Argentina no puede seguir entregandole la 10 a Riquelme, eso es fanatismo y no cabeza...

Con todo el respeto y cariño que le tengo a la Argentina
Pablo Rodriguez

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