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AGUILAS!!!
The Ultimate Soccer Thread 2012-2013 Vol. 3 Premier League, La Liga, Serie A, Bundesliga etc
- Thread in 'Sports & Training' Thread starter Started by the sauna,
- Start date
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Man .. didn't know there was a game today :/
Just tune din.
Just tune din.
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On the pitch for 30 seconds and he got scored on 
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Ont he pitch for two minutes and got scored on twice
mr marcus
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Hart was like **** this 
Entertaining friendly though...city has so many missed shots...
Entertaining friendly though...city has so many missed shots...
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Isn't that City's issue? All season they just can't finish.
Are both teams playing without managers?
Are both teams playing without managers?
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Wow!
City have had like 30+ shots?
City have had like 30+ shots?
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mr marcus
Banned
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Yea basically....city 1st half unders was a huge money maker cause they hardly ever scored in the first half
sonoftony
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City 
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WOW
mr marcus
Banned
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it has happened.
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smh at all ya watching the friendly over the xolos libertadores game and america vs. cruz azul..
if anyone seen the america game, can you please give me a quick summary of the last half hour?..had to go to work..gthanskks.
if anyone seen the america game, can you please give me a quick summary of the last half hour?..had to go to work..gthanskks.
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Five trophies in five years: Manchester City chief exec spells out what's expected of new manager Manuel Pellegrini
From David McDonnell in New York
Manchester City's manager-in-waiting Manuel Pellegrini has been set a target of five trophies in as many years - including the Champions League.
Deposed Premier League champions City ended the season empty-handed and that failure saw boss Roberto Mancini pay with his job, with the Malaga coach Pellegrini set to succeed him in the next 10 days.
Despite the upheaval caused by Mancini’s sacking and the fall-out from the contentious decision, club chief executive Ferran Soriano is convinced City will emerge stronger from the Italian’s departure.
And the City supremo has outlined his immediate targets and long-term vision for the club, with the holy grail of the Champions League the ultimate aim.
“I think that next season is going to be much better, I am convinced about that,” said Soriano during City’s post-season tour of the US.
“It doesn’t mean we’re going to win one or two titles. But, in the grand scheme of things, if we look at the next five years and I could plan now, I would say I want to win five trophies in the next five years.
“That may mean we win no trophies one year and two in another but, on average, I want one trophy or title a year.
“That’s the Champions League, the Premier League or the FA Cup. I think it’s a realistic aim, yes. But I’m talking about five years.
“If next year we don’t win, but progress our football and get to the semi-finals of the Champions League, finish second in the Premier League and lose the FA Cup Final again, that will be fine.
“That’s because we will have progressed in the way our football develops.”
Soriano spent five years at Barcelona as vice-president and managing director, and wants City to adopt a similar football philosophy of nurturing their own, home-grown talent.
The City chief also referenced Manchester United’s famed Class of ‘92 that produced David Beckham, Paul Scholes, Nicky Butt and the Nevilles, and is keen to emulate that model of success.
“Teams that have won consistently in the past have a core of players that are home-grown,” said Soriano.
“I’ve seen it to the extreme in Barcelona, where we won the Champions League, with nine out of the 11 players in the team home-grown. And you’ve seen it at United.
“It’s consistent. You can’t win one year after the next if you don’t have a core of players that have been playing together for a long time.
“What we also want is football concept so that the basic way we play is shared by the whole organisation. From young teams all the way up to the first-team.
“We’re asking the new manager to have close collaboration with the youth football and to work together to achieve this. This has a consequence. We maximise the chance to win.
“You can’t go to the market every year and buy the most expensive players. That’s not to say we won’t be signing expensive players. We will.
“But the objective - the vision - is to have a team where at least half of the players will be ‘City’ players.
“A ‘City’ player will be someone like Joe Hart, who has been there a while. They love the club and can be the core of the squad.
“When a young boy or a marquee signing comes, he knows there are some people who are going to tell him ‘this is City, this is how we play, this is how we behave’.
“So the vision is that we will have at least half of the team at this core and we will be adding players every year as we need them.
“The players might come from other clubs, continents or cultures, but we have to have stability in the culture and the way we play.”
City’s baffling inconsistency last season, which included away defeats to Southampton, Everton and Tottenham, was another key factor in Soriano deciding to ditch Mancini.
With the calibre of players City have in their squad, Soriano claimed such inconsistency should not happen and Pellegrini is seen as the man to turn the team into a well-drilled winning machine.
“Our team has played some very good football this year,” said Soriano. “The problem was that it wasn’t consistent.
“You’ve seen some good games when we were very satisfied, like winning at Old Trafford. The challenge is it has to be more consistent.
“What cannot happen is that the team plays away and the performance changes so much from one game to the next. You never know what you’re going to see.
“It all starts with winning on the pitch and, if we can win in the 93rd minute on the last day, that’s fine.
“But I’d rather prefer winning with a bit more time and a cushion and to do this we have to be consistent in delivering good football.
“We want to get to a point where you go and watch City and you know the team is going to perform consistently and you know what kind of football you’re going to watch.”
http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/manchester-city-tell-manuel-pellegrini-1907178
From David McDonnell in New York
Manchester City's manager-in-waiting Manuel Pellegrini has been set a target of five trophies in as many years - including the Champions League.
Deposed Premier League champions City ended the season empty-handed and that failure saw boss Roberto Mancini pay with his job, with the Malaga coach Pellegrini set to succeed him in the next 10 days.
Despite the upheaval caused by Mancini’s sacking and the fall-out from the contentious decision, club chief executive Ferran Soriano is convinced City will emerge stronger from the Italian’s departure.
And the City supremo has outlined his immediate targets and long-term vision for the club, with the holy grail of the Champions League the ultimate aim.
“I think that next season is going to be much better, I am convinced about that,” said Soriano during City’s post-season tour of the US.
“It doesn’t mean we’re going to win one or two titles. But, in the grand scheme of things, if we look at the next five years and I could plan now, I would say I want to win five trophies in the next five years.
“That may mean we win no trophies one year and two in another but, on average, I want one trophy or title a year.
“That’s the Champions League, the Premier League or the FA Cup. I think it’s a realistic aim, yes. But I’m talking about five years.
“If next year we don’t win, but progress our football and get to the semi-finals of the Champions League, finish second in the Premier League and lose the FA Cup Final again, that will be fine.
“That’s because we will have progressed in the way our football develops.”
Soriano spent five years at Barcelona as vice-president and managing director, and wants City to adopt a similar football philosophy of nurturing their own, home-grown talent.
The City chief also referenced Manchester United’s famed Class of ‘92 that produced David Beckham, Paul Scholes, Nicky Butt and the Nevilles, and is keen to emulate that model of success.
“Teams that have won consistently in the past have a core of players that are home-grown,” said Soriano.
“I’ve seen it to the extreme in Barcelona, where we won the Champions League, with nine out of the 11 players in the team home-grown. And you’ve seen it at United.
“It’s consistent. You can’t win one year after the next if you don’t have a core of players that have been playing together for a long time.
“What we also want is football concept so that the basic way we play is shared by the whole organisation. From young teams all the way up to the first-team.
“We’re asking the new manager to have close collaboration with the youth football and to work together to achieve this. This has a consequence. We maximise the chance to win.
“You can’t go to the market every year and buy the most expensive players. That’s not to say we won’t be signing expensive players. We will.
“But the objective - the vision - is to have a team where at least half of the players will be ‘City’ players.
“A ‘City’ player will be someone like Joe Hart, who has been there a while. They love the club and can be the core of the squad.
“When a young boy or a marquee signing comes, he knows there are some people who are going to tell him ‘this is City, this is how we play, this is how we behave’.
“So the vision is that we will have at least half of the team at this core and we will be adding players every year as we need them.
“The players might come from other clubs, continents or cultures, but we have to have stability in the culture and the way we play.”
City’s baffling inconsistency last season, which included away defeats to Southampton, Everton and Tottenham, was another key factor in Soriano deciding to ditch Mancini.
With the calibre of players City have in their squad, Soriano claimed such inconsistency should not happen and Pellegrini is seen as the man to turn the team into a well-drilled winning machine.
“Our team has played some very good football this year,” said Soriano. “The problem was that it wasn’t consistent.
“You’ve seen some good games when we were very satisfied, like winning at Old Trafford. The challenge is it has to be more consistent.
“What cannot happen is that the team plays away and the performance changes so much from one game to the next. You never know what you’re going to see.
“It all starts with winning on the pitch and, if we can win in the 93rd minute on the last day, that’s fine.
“But I’d rather prefer winning with a bit more time and a cushion and to do this we have to be consistent in delivering good football.
“We want to get to a point where you go and watch City and you know the team is going to perform consistently and you know what kind of football you’re going to watch.”
http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/manchester-city-tell-manuel-pellegrini-1907178
Beans
formerly beans718
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the irony behind him saying the club will place importance on consistentancy.. right after they fire their manager... dont know what that board was thinking with both united and chelsea having new managers City would have been the favorite
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Stoke has made contact with Mark Hughes regarding managerial role.
Smh just another season of the usual for Stoke Rugby Club then lol...
Smh just another season of the usual for Stoke Rugby Club then lol...
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Thiago is the next Iniesta/Xavi in the eyes of Barca. And he's only 20. They are not selling him to anybody.
Problem is he can by bought out on the low because he didn't make enough appearances for his 90m euro buy-out clause to vest. He wants more playing time and if he went to United he would be competing with the likes of Cleverly and Anderson compared to Iniesta, Xavi, and Cesc, so you can see why he's considering it. Would hate to see him leave, though I imagine he'd return at some point and prove himself at home.
Messi's superior and played better for club and country - no matter how you want to look at it. And if I'm being real, you don't seem to know what you're talking about. If CR thought he could score more and perform better playing through the middle, he would play there. His last season at United was the last time he spent a lot of time as a number 9, and his strike rate that season was about 1 in 2 - which is far below his standard. He'd just rather not play with his back to goal and perform the thankless task of occupying the opposing centerbacks when he can comfortably play as a wide forward, receive the ball in space, and freely cut in on his right foot. Messi isn't a 'central striker' anyway, and plays deeper than CR, so your point is invalid. Regardless, there's more to attack than bagging goals. You didn't respond to my post or substantiate your claim that CR performed better anyway, so I'll just leave it at that.
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Beans
formerly beans718
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why anyone would continue to employ this man is beyond me.. he couldnt even do the job when he was being bank rolled by oil money.. if he is appointed I'd bet stoke will be relegated next season
Beans
formerly beans718
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The thiago situation worries me because Pep is a huge fan of his as well . Im also sure he knows how cheap he could get him for now. Lets just hope bayerns already stacked MF will deter him as well
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Tiago will only want to go somewhere with first team footy. That's probably the main reason why he'd consider a transfer. Who would Pep take out of that Bayern squad to start Thiago? I see Arsenal as the main competition for for him in the EPL...
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Great read on Thiago from Bleacher Report no less... The writer makes a great point from a tactical perspective on regarding Thialgo in Barcelona vs what his role would be with United however he's incorrect about the release clause.
As abovelegit1 mentioned due to lack of playing time Thialgo's release clause went down to something like $19 mil as opposed to over $70 mil.
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/...ors-united-shouldnt-move-for-thiago-alcantara
Also looks like Barcelona has Santos by the short & curlies. I'm glad because the way business is done in South America when it comes to young players is a got damn shame.
It looks like when Neymar commited to coming to Camp Nou, €10 or €11 mil was given to him from Barcelona back in November 2011. I think he's ready to leave Brazil also. I think he will revels in the thought of not having to be the savior of a team.
http://www.marca.com/2013/05/24/en/football/barcelona/1369377811.html
As abovelegit1 mentioned due to lack of playing time Thialgo's release clause went down to something like $19 mil as opposed to over $70 mil.
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/...ors-united-shouldnt-move-for-thiago-alcantara
Also looks like Barcelona has Santos by the short & curlies. I'm glad because the way business is done in South America when it comes to young players is a got damn shame.
It looks like when Neymar commited to coming to Camp Nou, €10 or €11 mil was given to him from Barcelona back in November 2011. I think he's ready to leave Brazil also. I think he will revels in the thought of not having to be the savior of a team.
http://www.marca.com/2013/05/24/en/football/barcelona/1369377811.html
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No offense to you psk, but that article once again shows bleacherreport is trash. It sounds like the typical ramblings of an ignorant EPL fanboy. His whole conclusion seems to be that Thiago is skilled, but the EPL is too physical for him too succeed, despite the fact that this notion has been proven false over and over again by 'lightweight' players coming over and dominating. Cesc is about the same size as Thiago, yet he was the best central mid in the league while he was in England, and there are countless other examples.
Thiago is obviously a great passer - long or short - and has a keen eye for the key pass and the weighted throughball. He completed 117/127 longballs this season, and yet dude is saying he isn't adept at it. Also has a great work rate and his awareness and positioning are excellent. Not sure why anyone would think he wouldn't be a great buy, especially for under 20m with years of further development ahead. I don't think he'll leave in the end, but if he does someone will be getting a big talent.
"For who's going to win—him, or Yaya Toure?"
LOL. Such profound analysis can only be found at places like bleacherreport and goal.com.
Thiago is obviously a great passer - long or short - and has a keen eye for the key pass and the weighted throughball. He completed 117/127 longballs this season, and yet dude is saying he isn't adept at it. Also has a great work rate and his awareness and positioning are excellent. Not sure why anyone would think he wouldn't be a great buy, especially for under 20m with years of further development ahead. I don't think he'll leave in the end, but if he does someone will be getting a big talent.
"For who's going to win—him, or Yaya Toure?"
LOL. Such profound analysis can only be found at places like bleacherreport and goal.com.
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You're right, the writer is incorrect about Thialgo's ability to deliver a long ball but I think he hit on a good point about Thialgo being a creative and deep–lying pivot midfielder at Camp Nou. If he asked to play a role outside of that, I think he might have trouble adjusting. Kinda the way Cesc has had trouble coming back to Camp Nou from Arsenal. I kind of tuned everything else out of the article & didn't clarify myself as to what I agreed with.
I just hope they sort out the midfield situation (among other things). I find it puzzling that they had the league titled wrapped up a short while ago & they still had Xavi playing (& Iniesta) a lot of minutes for games in the following weeks. I would've rested the either/both of them & put in Thailgo. I thought that's what they might've started a while ago when both Thialgo & Tello scored goals. I can't remember who they played that week.
BTW - who in the heck is that in your avy?!?! The face looks so familiar but in my old age my memory is starting to go & I can't for the life of me recall who that is...
I just hope they sort out the midfield situation (among other things). I find it puzzling that they had the league titled wrapped up a short while ago & they still had Xavi playing (& Iniesta) a lot of minutes for games in the following weeks. I would've rested the either/both of them & put in Thailgo. I thought that's what they might've started a while ago when both Thialgo & Tello scored goals. I can't remember who they played that week.
BTW - who in the heck is that in your avy?!?! The face looks so familiar but in my old age my memory is starting to go & I can't for the life of me recall who that is...
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Ronaldo > Messi.
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Availability, 'Arry just said he wants to stay with QPR. They can't afford the big wages of the Mancini's do the world. Young managers like Laudrup, Di Matteo and Martinez are too ambitious to take on such a club. Rafa's of the world want CL footy. So what can you do....you take someone with some EPL experience and who's unemployed so his salary won't kill you...
