We won a domestic treble last season and potentially a domestic double this season. If we don't invest in this team and if flick doesn't do better at managing the minutes of important players, we might not even see a single domestic trophy to take home next season.
Real got what they needed in Cucurella but Barcelona didn't lose out at all. Cancelo is more that able to compete with Balde kn that position.
Our defensive issues can be solved by Cancelo-Schloterbeck-Cubarsi-Eric.
Balde-Martin-Araujo-Kounde are enough for depth.
Yamal is making me not say Messi which should be the obvious choice but I'd go with Puyol because his position is the one we're currently in most need of filling.
Suarez comes a close second while Dani Alvez makes up the first 3 list because of Kounde's decline.
@BouafifNour I still hold Pep in high regards but I don't know if there's any coach apart from Pep that's better than Flick on in-game management. Flick game management is elite. Thank you Islam for the tactical analysis, it was in-depth.
What does it truly mean to control the midfield? Today, Bouaddi taught the world its perfect definition.
More than 60 successful passes. Each pass looked like a precise geometric line drawn by a master architect. He attempted 5 dribbles and completed 3 of them. He made 4 perfect tackles, each as sharp as a surgeon’s blade. He recovered the ball 6 times from the opposition’s feet. And the most frightening statistic of all was the physical battle...the duels. Out of 14 duels, he won 9.
These numbers are not just statistics. They are lashes of a whip, crashing down today on Brazil’s midfield.
Casemiro, Paquetá, Fabinho...where was Brazil’s million-dollar midfield today?
The answer is very simple.
They were all locked inside Ayyoub Bouaddi’s pocket.
Bouaddi strangled Brazil’s midfield so brutally that the superstars in yellow shirts were gasping for breath. Single-handedly, he made the entire Brazil team tactically and physically crippled. By the pure grammar of football, today’s Man of the Match or MVP award going to Bouaddi was as certain as gravity itself.
And how was Vinícius’ performance tonight?
To be honest, watching him play today, it felt as if he had accidentally walked into an ice-skating rink wearing football boots. He was slipping while trying to run. He was losing control while trying to receive the ball.
On a stage like the World Cup, playing as Brazil’s main striker or main man, Vinícius produced a historic record of shame today. He attempted 8 dribbles and succeeded in exactly zero of them...0 out of 8.
In World Cup history, there is hardly another example of a Brazilian main man producing such a dreadful, zero-success dribbling record.
From the wing, he attempted 3 crosses. Not a single one reached its destination...0 out of 3. And in physical duels? Against Morocco’s strong, aggressive defenders, Vinícius looked like a helpless schoolboy. Out of 15 duels, he lost 12.
Morocco’s defenders literally threw him to the ground.
Yes, he scored a goal. But in modern football, one goal alone cannot cover up a dreadful 90-minute performance. Apart from that single goal, Vinícius was an invisible ghost throughout the match. He did not influence Brazil’s attack in any meaningful way. Instead, by repeatedly losing possession, he kept offering the opposition opportunities to counterattack.
The match ended.
The award ceremony stage was ready.
Everyone in the stadium was waiting to hear Ayyoub Bouaddi’s name. Even the commentators seemed certain that today’s MVP would be that Moroccan warrior.
Then suddenly, the announcer’s voice boomed through the stadium speakers:
“And the Man of the Match is... Vinícius Júnior!”
This is how PR works.
An unsung hero like Ayyoub Bouaddi...someone who may not have millions and millions of Instagram followers, someone whose face cannot sell million-dollar Nike or Adidas boots—does not bring any profit to the sponsors’ balance sheet if he is given the MVP award.
On the other hand, Vinícius Júnior is a walking billion-dollar billboard.
He may miss 8 dribbles. He may lose 12 duels. None of that matters to the sponsors. If the MVP trophy is placed in his hands, that image will go viral across social media within seconds. Global broadcasting networks will use that picture to boost their ratings.
Ayyoub Bouaddi walks back toward the dressing room.
There is no trophy in his hands.
But on his broad shoulders, he carries the deep satisfaction of having destroyed an empire.
Perhaps he knows that in this corporate football world, warriors like him do not belong on the trophy stage.
Their place is only in the blood-soaked battlefields of grass.
@Wharrlay@ESPNFC FIFA told Kolo Muani to miss that 1v1 with Martinez or it was Argentina that received a penalty kick on the day?
Stop reasoning like a toddler.
@Wharrlay@ESPNFC FIFA told Kolo Muani to miss that 1v1 with Martinez or it was Argentina that received a penalty kick on the day?
Stop reasoning like a toddler.
Incredible news. Cancelo is the *perfect* player & profile to maximise both Gordon and Raphinha. That creator/runner dynamic on the left flank is virtually unstoppable!
All the pieces are coming together, man 😍
@BouafifNour This doesn't make sense. Rashford has also been dying to play for Barcelona. He has helped us in the attack this season looking at Raphinha's inconsistencies. So if there's anyone we should keep, it should be Rashford as he actually impressed me this past season at Barcelona