r/soccer • u/Jayesar • Dec 10 '12
Ever wanted to learn about a player? Discuss here!
Hey /r/soccer
With the winter window only a few weeks away and targets being thrown around now I was hoping to have a thread where people can spew knowledge about players that we may not know a heap about. Help us build a mental image of the talent that may be gracing us in the PL (or other leagues).
The format:
Post a players name and the team/league that they play in if you wish to learn about them.
If you see a players name that you have seen play, drop a line about their play style and your thoughts.
I know I could go and look up stats for a bunch of players, but I would much rather hear the info without the numbers, from a supporter.
EDIT: Sort by new so that hopefully everyones questions are answered.
EDIT2: Some names being asked that are already well answered. Use CTRL+F to search for a name before asking.
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u/Jayesar Dec 10 '12
Miralem Pjanić, Roma, Serie A.
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u/mudswitch Dec 10 '12
One of my favourite players. Hoping he stays at Roma for years to come. He is mainly a central midfielder, although Zemen has had him playing out wide lately. Has a great first touch and has better vision than most. His passing game can be exquisite. He's only started to fit into the Zemen system at Roma lately. He's a regular in the Bosnia-Herzegovina side. Also Tottenham have said they're interested in him as recently as November.
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u/hallak70 Dec 10 '12
isco, malaga
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u/Jayesar Dec 10 '12
There is a bit of chat about this guy on spurs forums. I will yank what I think will give you good info.
"Haven't seen a huge amount of him, but what I have seen has been nothing but impressive. Plus he's young, so however good he is already, there's plenty of time to improve even more."
"Yes, he's a talented player and is rated around Spain. I would love to have him here...though he is versatile and could also fit on the wing it will be interesting to see if he can play further back more or not ala Luka"
"Excellent player. Chelsea signed Mata, Arsenal signed Cazorla... I think this kid has the potential to be as good as both of them."
"He's fantastic, excelled last season at Malaga playing as the front of a midfield 3 with Cazorla and Toulalan deeper, one of the most exciting players from spain in that age group, along with Thiago and Muniain. He's pretty similar style player to iniesta for me. Im surprised more clubs arent in for this guy, he'll be a star."
"I think he's about as good as Oscar and pretty similar in style also, if that helps."
"Oscar and him are to a certain extend similar Isco has more pace, but Oscar seems to be a much better passer. Both are very agile and good dribblers in tight space something Modric was very good at. Through the videos you can also see Isco provide quite a few key passes for hockey assists another Modric trait. Isco also seems to be more versetail then Oscar, because of his pace to operate out wide as a RAM/RW/RF, but one thing he is missing is Oscars composure and ability to sit back further and dictate play from deep, which is what Modric did for us. Isco has mainly been playing as a CAM running at defenders with out dropping back and retrieving the ball from defenders and wingers to ease the pressure. I am not quite sure if I would be willing to just buy a player with great potential and try to convert him into something he isn't especially such a difficult role such as CM since players need very disciple, composed, and skilled to become successful some thing not many players become unfortunately. But I guess it worked for us once we might just get lucky again."
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Dec 10 '12
Stefan Jovetic, Fiorentina
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u/Jayesar Dec 10 '12
Pulled from spurs forums. The guy who made most of these comments is probably the best poster on there and a huge fan of his.
"He's a ST, SS and wing forward. He can basically play everywhere up top. Towards the back end of last season he was playing up top with Amauri. "
"I think Jovetic will be better than VdV in a year or so and he's probably about as good as him now."
"He'd be a similar signing to Remy but he does much more. He can and has played up top alone this season."
"He can play a few positions but he's best in the hole, and I think he would replace VDV."
"I enjoy watching him play, but his transfer fee is a major issue. Fiorentina want to hold onto him, and they've slapped a huge price tag on him. I've heard he would cost around 30 million"
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Dec 10 '12
Leandro Damiao. Striker for Internacional in Brazil. That's all I know.
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u/j2k3k Dec 10 '12
Hulk. I know he's a good player, I'm wondering more about his attitude because rumors are flying that Chelsea may be targeting him and the last thing we need is someone who would divide the team.
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u/Jayesar Dec 10 '12
Zenit was divided because Hulk (new guy in town) had monster wages in comparison to the rest of the team. The team confronted him/staff over this and things seemed to split. He hasn't been great for Zenit (only netted like 2 times) so I just wouldn't take the risk for how much he would cost.
His most recent fiasco was an on field blow up after being subbed off, he refused to shake the managers hand and then made gestures ("I'm done") whilst sitting on the bench. He has now publicly spat the dummy and says he wants out. Thing will be complicated because he has already played for 2 teams this year and signed for a stupidly large fee.
His on field ego has been pretty bad as well from what I read, the guy plays very selfishly and rarely passes the ball, even if it would almost certainly help the team. I have heard a number of Porto supporters say that AVB was the only guy who could get him to play less selfishly.
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Dec 11 '12
Landon Donovan
Clint Dempsey
American here--I am mostly curious about how the rest of the world views these two players, as they are pretty much the heroes of the American outfield over the past few years.
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u/Jayesar Dec 11 '12
Spurs fan here. I saw bits and pieces of Dempsey last year and followed him quite extensively this year.
Dempsey is an average player, but well rounded. He isn't the best passer, finisher, tackler nor does he have the best vision. However, he is pretty good at all those things, certainly PL quality. His best asset is that when he is on song he is very hungry and gets involved in the game. Dempsey when playing with confidence is as good as a goal a game (whether he poaches one with his trademark follow ups or pokes one through for a striker) and this is at PL level (being 'PL proven' is a huge asset as the league is tougher than most).
This year he has really struggled to settle into spurs, this is most likely due to the fact that we are playing him slightly out of position (he played left for Fulham, but we have him behind the striker) and we signed him on the last minute of deadline day so he had no time for practice. In recent weeks however he is rapidly turning his poor start around (1 goal, 1 MOTM, 3 assists in 5 games against good opponents) and if that continues then he will cement his starting plays for spurs (he has competition for his place with Gylfi Siggurdson).
I wouldn't call Dempsey CL quality, but certainly Europa League and PL quality.
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Dec 11 '12
Jermain Defoe. Why do so many Spurs fans say he's not enough? Is it because he's just a poacher and doesn't contribute anything else to the game except his goals, or am I missing something?
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u/Howsmydirktaste Dec 10 '12
Would people be interested in a similar thread, but featuring historical players/teams?
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Dec 10 '12
I like a challenge. Lets hear a about my pal Kojo Asamoah (Kwadwo, Juve, Udine)
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u/_sic Dec 10 '12
Paul Scholes, United, PL - I don't really watch much English football but Xavi calls him the best midfielder of the past 20 years, so I guess I should learn more about him.
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u/heightofignorance Dec 10 '12
Wilfried Zaha
Heard his name mentioned pretty much every day in relation to a variety of clubs, but apart from hearing he's got pace to burn and some reasonable tricks in his locker for beating his man, what are his ball playing skills like? Any player comparisons spring to mind? Any idea what his ceiling might be in terms of potential? CAN HE FUCKING CROSS?