The Beautiful Game Thread

[KG]

The Beautiful Game Thread

I personally thought Rakitic got hosed. He was better than all of those guys IMO. Iniesta isn't even much of a middie tbh.

I have no problem with Ramos over Pique for the fact that Ramos is much more exposed than all of those guys because Real doesn't play with any defensive middies. Add it the fact that Varane and Pepe were hurt a lot in 2015 and I feel like I'm Ok with him over Pique.

Lahm at RB seems logical but he didn't play there that much. Rafinha played RB a lot for Bayern when they weren't going 3 in the back.


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[dubcity]

Re: The Beautiful Game Thread

I personally thought Rakitic got hosed. He was better than all of those guys IMO. Iniesta isn't even much of a middie tbh.
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Yeah, I'm a huge Modric fan but that's a curious selection. And Pogba didn't do much of anything to start the 2015/16 Serie A season. Rakitic over both of them works for me.

[10]

Re: The Beautiful Game Thread

I wish I could remember who it was against (may have been group stages of the CL) but he recently had a diving palm save off a completed cross that was far post and behind him that I didn't think he would get to. It was insane.

Did Bayern play ManU in group stages? I think it was against them

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I think you're referring to the one he had against Arsenal. He saved a header from Theo in the center of the 6 yard box by diving from the near post to the center. Another one to look at is one he had around April or May against a free kick from Marco Reus. He literally stopped the ball near the post on the goal line with one hand. He's incredible.

Found both!

Arsenal

Reus

[Brahvocado]

Re: The Beautiful Game Thread

I personally thought Rakitic got hosed. He was better than all of those guys IMO. Iniesta isn't even much of a middie tbh.

I have no problem with Ramos over Pique for the fact that Ramos is much more exposed than all of those guys because Real doesn't play with any defensive middies. Add it the fact that Varane and Pepe were hurt a lot in 2015 and I feel like I'm Ok with him over Pique.

Lahm at RB seems logical but he didn't play there that much. Rafinha played RB a lot for Bayern when they weren't going 3 in the back.


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I hardly ever disagree with you but I have to here. Honestly, in my opinion at least, Ramos is one of the most overrated defenders in the world. The amount of just purely bonehead errors he makes is astounding for a top level CB. Even when Jose was there, who did play with a DM, Ramos was a liability.

Like I said, it's a popularity contest. Boateng is unquestionably the best CB in the world right now, and has been for the last 2 seasons. I don't even think it's arguable.

As for Ramos over Pique, Pique helped his team win a treble while having one of the best defenses in Europe.

Still though, I'd have Boateng over Pique.

[Brahvocado]

Re: The Beautiful Game Thread

Ospina in the top 50 and Buffon not included.

What a joke.

[KG]

Re: The Beautiful Game Thread

I hardly ever disagree with you but I have to here. Honestly, in my opinion at least, Ramos is one of the most overrated defenders in the world. The amount of just purely bonehead errors he makes is astounding for a top level CB. Even when Jose was there, who did play with a DM, Ramos was a liability.

Like I said, it's a popularity contest. Boateng is unquestionably the best CB in the world right now, and has been for the last 2 seasons. I don't even think it's arguable.

As for Ramos over Pique, Pique helped his team win a treble while having one of the best defenses in Europe.

Still though, I'd have Boateng over Pique.

Oh, he makes bonehead plays at times but he also covers a lot of ground and is much more of a traditional CB. To me, Pique's greatest attribute is his passing and while it's great to have distribution from the back, I'd prefer a CB who is better in 1v1's and Ramos is statistically despite some of his transgressions. It wasn't too long ago that Enrique benched Pique because of his mental lapses. It was really Mascherano who carried Barca defensively when they were struggling in the beginning of last year.

I personally think Silva is a tad overrated too (that yellow he picked up in the WC before the Germany match was just idiotic) and if I had to pick one CB from La Liga I would go with Diego Godin all day. If it's about accomplishments, where is Chiellini? More pace, a better and more willing tackler, tough as nails, and won nearly every competition last year for club. Not only that but he can play with 3 in the back or 4.

That list to me just screams laziness and reinforces that popularity rules all. Hell, I thought Neymar should have gotten the Ballon D'or over Messi. He was killer in 2015.

[Brahvocado]

Re: The Beautiful Game Thread

Every Juve fan says Bonucci is their best defender.

Godin is super underrated, have to agree there.

But anyway, I still think it's crazy Boateng isn't on that list.

[Keano16]

Re: The Beautiful Game Thread

Ospina in the top 50 and Buffon not included.

What a joke.

I thought I saw Buffon at 3rd/4th.

[Keano16]

Re: The Beautiful Game Thread

Silva is slightly overrated for me. He's got in the team 2 years in a row but he's playing in a weaker league. Boateng and Chiellini would have been my choices for CB.

[ImTellinTim]

Re: The Beautiful Game Thread

Remember guys, you're arguing results of a large-scale player poll. It is nothing but a popularity contest.

[Brahvocado]

Re: The Beautiful Game Thread

Surprised no Arsenal players made the 11

[KG]

Re: The Beautiful Game Thread

Every Juve fan says Bonucci is their best defender.

Godin is super underrated, have to agree there.

But anyway, I still think it's crazy Boateng isn't on that list.

Yeah I'd have to say in both of their respective roles, considering the similarity in systems, Boateng is superior, even with his National side.

Yeah Bonucci is a stud too. I wouldn't have minded seeing either of them on there.

[dubcity]

Re: The Beautiful Game Thread

I thought I saw Buffon at 3rd/4th.

He was 3rd behind De Gea.

[10]

The Beautiful Game Thread

Remember guys, you're arguing results of a large-scale player poll. It is nothing but a popularity contest.

To add to this here's how some of the players and coaches voted for Ballon d'Or. Mascherano had 5 first place votes.

Spoiler

First, the finalists themselves, each of whom captain their international team. Messi voted for, in order, Luis Suárez, Neymar, and Andrés Iniesta. Neymar went Messi, Suárez, Ivan Rakitić. Ronaldo voted Karim Benzema, James Rodríguez, Gareth Bale. Interpret those choices as you will.

In fact, every Barcelona and Real Madrid player that also captains his international team submitted a ballot only featuring teammates. Good ego appeasement, right there.

A prime example of homerism: Vincent Kompany’s ballot, which read: Eden Hazard, Kevin De Bruyne, Messi. Surprisingly, though, De Bruyne did receive nine votes in total, including two first-place ones: one from Myanmar’s German manager (and possible Wolfsburg fan?) Gerd Zeise and the other from Togo manager and Belgian compatriot Tom Saintfiet.

More homerism: Peru’s captain, Claudio Pizarro, voted Manuel Neuer, Thomas Müller, Toni Kroos. At club level, Pizarro is in his first season at Werder Bremen after spending three years with Bayern Munich.

More homerism: Yaya Touré received 18 votes, 14 of which came from voters representing African nations.

Lest you think this is all homerism, Guinea captain Florentin Pogba did not vote for his brother, Paul.

You can sort of infer a thread of fandom in some ballots. For instance, of Toni Kroos’s nine votes, seven came on ballots he shared with either a former Bayern teammate or a non-Ronaldo Real Madrid one. Also, is Mexico manager Juan Carlos Osorio (Müller, Neuer, Arturo Vidal) a Bayern fan?

The most head-scratching name to get any first-place votes was Barcelona defender/Argentina defensive midfielder Javier Mascherano. Of his 11 overall votes, five of them listed him first, two coming from the captain and the manager of Guatemala.

The most inexplicable ballot might be Vanuatu captain Masauvakalo Fenedy, who selected Paul Pogba, Thomas Müller, and Alexis Sánchez. All three of these guys show up in other ballots, so, okay. But together, and in that order?

Stephane Mbia probably claims second prize, with his Touré, Zlatan Ibrahimović, Neuer ballot.

[redsox4evur]

Re: The Beautiful Game Thread

Surprised no Arsenal players made the 11

The only one you could make a case for Ozil. Because I don't think Sanchez has done enough this season.