It's Quiet thread 14 - 'do one' edition

[tolmie's hairdoo]

He is getting the same briefings as all the media, ESPN are all over it today, although they state PSG are in the mix.

You think City are briefing the media about Messi?

My info is out of Abu Dhabi and some related contacts at CFG, they most certainly ain't briefs!

Some of the stories now doing the rounds will be chatter from Spain and ripping stuff off here.

 

[domalino]

Rarely played a decent game with Aguero.
Plays in a free role, with team built around him.
KDB often plays a free role in our team.
Will be playing in a higher intensity league, at 34 where many of our younger attackers have picked up injuries.
Takes all the pressure off Pep , to build a new team & allows him to do a Pellegrini, seeing out a 3 year deal tied to Messi, then leave, with whatever situation behind him.
Teams will be more keen to stop us, again rather than stopping Liverpool, whose turn it should be for the treatment.

Players who don't fit in with Messi, will effectively be finished at City, even if they are key members of the 'team' with all the possible resentment that brings in, with their team mates.

Pep might go mental & leave, if results don't go his way & he loses inspiration (we do still have to defend & Barca can't do it for example) .

Imo Messi will have no problem in the Prem but no guarantee the team will not lose out in other areas.

Most of these are not really genuine concerns. He's just turned 33.

He's never played with Aguero week in/week out under a good coach.

He'll create more space for KDB than he has seen since he was a no-name ginger kid in Germany. Messi is the biggest defender magnet in history, and players who are around him have benefited from that for a decade.

It's up to the manager to make him a cog in the machine, even if he's the best and most important cog. He's leaving Barcelona to win trophies and be under a great manager again, he knows what that means and if he just wants a team built around him he'll stay.

We are always going to be the team to beat, because we're the best side with or without Messi.

"Pep might go mental & leave"?! I don't even know what to reply to that.

 

[ctid1894]

While i agree with some of your your are already deciding that Messi cant press. You are also forgetting that we pretty much stopped high pressing regualrly last season - not cause we couldnt but because for whatever reason Pep decided not to - we returned to it against Madrid but for most of the season we werent pressing with the same intensity regardless. We arent like Liverpool under klopp and never have been

Chicken or egg situation.

I'd suggest we didn't press with he same intensity because we didn't have the players (available or in form) to implement it this season.

I never said anything about being like Livarpool or wanting to be anything like Livarpool but as you rightly point out we did high press in the two title winning seasons, for different reasons, but that's irrelevant. We're at our best with high intensity pressing, the trophy cabinet proves it.

Messi can press but won't because like most players of a certain age, he needs to conserve his energy levels. Very few players (Fernandinho being one) can maintain constant high intensity pressing levels at 33, however we all know Fernandinho at 35 simply isn't capable of doing that job anymore on a consistent basis. If you think Messi is any different and age doesn't affect him, then we'll have to agree to disagree.

 

[tolmie's hairdoo]

I understand what he said, but should we blow a large portion of that CFG money on a 33 yr old?

That CFG money is also needed for a new stadium for NYCFC, and the Etihad 100% needs a complete new roof within the next 10 years and the North stand rebuild.

We are well short in terms of our owner's requirement to win the Champions League and to regain the title we lost by 18 points this last season.

If that money is available for special signings, go and get Mbappe, Felix and the like, players who could and probably will be the next superstars and potentially give 10 years service for this club.

Messi would only sign for us because he is rightfully pissed with Barca, he would come nowhere near us if he was happy.

Mbappe doesn't want to come here and never will.

 

[Keeper!]

You think City are briefing the media about Messi?

My info is out of Abu Dhabi and some related contacts at CFG, they most certainly ain't briefs!

Some of the stories now doing the rounds will be chatter from Spain and ripping stuff off here.

Ok, but the media all over the world are picking something up from somebody, same story, City evaluating the costs etc.
Espn , PSG thinking about Messi, maybe for Neymar.
Someone is briefing, almost certainly Barca and Josep Maria Bartomeu in terms of Spain.

 

[argyle]

Mbappe doesn't want to come here and never will.

The tour of Manchester we gave him went well then...

 

[simon23]

In the attacking phase of the game, yes, mostly against crap La Liga teams. Did he look like the best player in the world when Barca got smashed by Roma, Liverpool and Bayern? Has he been the best player in the CL since 2016? NO.

This season in the CL, Messi contributed a goal/assist every 110 minutes. In comparison, the much maligned on here Jesus contributed a goal/assist every 60 minutes.

However, and here comes the really bad part, football is also about defending well, and modern football about defending well from the front by high pressing. When it comes to defending, Messi is literally worse than a conference player. An U18 player would be more useful than him when defending.

Hope our bosses do not invest 250m in a 33 y.o. player who contributes only in the attacking phase of the game and whose career in England might be ruined by a daft challenge by some random old-style defender.

He looked the best player on Barca's team yes.

You again presume that under Pep he wouldnt improve the areas of the game that you point out as weaknesses (defneisve). The whole Barca team was woeful at defending - not just messi -their whole team went absent

Is he a better attacked than Jesus and Sterling - yes he is - would he miss the chances they both miss regularly - no he wouldnt.

ANY players career at any stage can be ruined by a daft challenge

 

[dhruvblue]

The only negative with messi signing would be we still won't win at Dipperfield and Messi will probably miss a sitter. Otherwise only positives

 

[domalino]

Mbappe doesn't want to come here and never will.

You know the one thing that might make Mbappe want to come?


Playing with Messi...

Contract expires in 2022.

 

[Keeper!]

Mbappe doesn't want to come here and never will.

I was using an example of a special player if available.

I would prefer us to be spending those reserves on the next big things.

The only place Mbappe is going to is Real.

I find it strange if these reserves are available for special players, why the hell did we not break the bank to get the CB we desperately needed at the start of last season.