i have been following every argentine in europe closely this year. and I am currently watching the inter game right now seeing Samuel control the back four is awesome. He is an absolute beast, even-though he is 30 i believe with him in the back 4 or 3 he will have more consistency in defense. Zanetti, Demi, Samuel, Heinze is looking good right now...obviously when Milito gets back from injury he will have to get back into shape. Also, Colo is playing excellent right now for newcastle...other center backs that should be given a shot should be garay and gonzalo..,.what are your thoughts.
He is about the right age for a defender, I don't think that is an issue given his current form. Saw him today against Lazio, he scored a nice header and was rock solid through the game. Surprisingly he distributed the ball well with some nice long passes from the back. However, I feel that he is a double-edged sword, he is way too aggressive and susceptible to get a booking. Mourinho praised him and he is a coach who values his defender. If he keeps his current form and remains injury free then no question he should be in the squad, he is an asset regardless of whether he starts or not. About the game; Lazio definitely lost their ways, no creativity whatsoever and Zarate was taken out of the game. He still managed to display some insane footwork...almost scored the goal of the season. Disappointed with Ledesma as well, he should probably play for the Italian NT while he has the chance. Cambiasso... I am convinced he has a twin brother. With Inter he is calm & collected, anticipates every move and reads the game perfectly. We get the clumsy downgrade that offers nothing to the team/
yeah i hear ya on that fact about cambiasso sending his twin when he plays for the NT haha...he is so good for inter right now i would say their best player whoops. this would be my starting xi at the moment...4-1-2-1-2 Carrizo; Zanetti, Demi, Samuel, Heinze(playing well lately); Mashe(Cambiasso); Maxi, Lavezzi; Tevez (Riquelme); Messi, El Kun
Samuel should always start next to Gonzalo in the middle of the defense. That would be a great partnership.
Im not down with Heinze being a left back for the NT i prefer Papa or Monzon! however Samuel back to form sounds great! i always thought hes a fantastic defender and i hope he continues to play this way cause i'd take an in-form Samuel over any other defender in Argentina!
El Muro is alright in my book. He's great in the air both defensively and as a nice passing option for Roman on set piecies (which we sorely lack). Also, he provides great leadership with his tough as nails attitude. He is very good in small spaces, meaning he can keep track of the man he's marking and close down the passing options by positioning himself well. Plus, he's still only 30...For some reason, I thought he was older. But a few things work against him. He is just not as good in wide open spaces. If he has to cover some ground to cover for another one of his defensive partners, he just doesn't look as good. I have nightmares of Kaka turning him inside out repeatedly in a Milan derby (wasn't that last year when he injured an MCL?). I know you'll say that it was Kaka but still, that gives me cause for concern. Also, his agressive style is a CONSTANT risk of a card. I never knew his distributing to be a strength but then again, I don't like the idea of a center back being too involved in attacking. I prefer them to stay at home at all times. I have no problem with him coming back but we must have a clear understanding of both the positives and the negatives he offers.
I think Samuel should be in the squad, he's a much better bet than Heinze, who, in my opinion, does not deserve to be in the squad on curremt form.
I like Samuel and 30 to 32 is a good age for a defender, but I fear we do have a lack of defensive players that play with finesse and controll. Samuel does have a tendency to give up fouls as does Milito, as does Heinze, Colo too !! As much as I like Demi I can't see a partenership with him and Samuel working and I would not want to drop Demi who plays his butt off for us. Samuel being prone to cards and giving up free kicks as well as Mascher and Heinze as well is too much of a liability not too mention the lack of speed can be a factor as well. I think Samuel could be an asset of the bench as a sub for Demi however, wich leaves the question who should partner Demi in the middle? Garay to be honest impressed me more last year this year not so much, Gonzalo still has much to prove before handing him a starting spot, no? Heinze and Samuel would be a disaster. Zanetti in the back with two slower CB's ???!!! I think then we should once again look towards balance and lean towards youth in the flanks, with an experienced stopper with height and physical presence and a sweeper of sorts in behind with finesse and speed, fact is the names are there the players are there, the talent is there, but what is the perfect combination?
I thought Cata Diaz did a good job as a CB. Also Gonzalo had a great game last week and showed he can perform under pressure. I wouldn't mind any of them to start, along with Demi, who I agree should be a fixed choice. As for Samuel, I was definitely not a fan, but he is indeed in a great shape right now. I'd not mind trying him at LB, for more defensive games. Though I think we should start involving younger prospects like Monzon from now on already.
When you consider that not only Heinze but Colocini, who has been too apalling for words this season, regularly get into the squad then it's difficult to make a arguament for Samuel not to be inlcuded.
I think Samuel would definitely be a good alternative to Demichelis, but not a good partner. You can have one of Demichelis, Samuel, or Coloccini on the field, but ideally not two of them at the same time. I think playing two of them together accentuates their weaknesses in terms of speed, especially since Argentina usually holds the ball and pushes forward, and tends to leave open spaces in the back. We need a partnership that can defend the counterattack better. I think for now Demichelis deserves to be starting. An in-form Gonzalo Rodriguez would be an ideal partner for a player like Demi. Another one could be Ezequiel Garay, as he gains more experience. The bonus of having Garay is that he is also a superb penalty kick taker, and we saw in Germany how important that can be.
My point exactly, like I said before Demi is in therefore we need a partnership, Gonzo may look good but still needs to prove himself nationaly, Garay I like but he needs more time with the national team too.
Samuel is in good form right now but who know if that would carry over to the national team. I hate the idea of going backwards when we have 2 reliable CB's in Demi and Gonzo. Remember Julio Cruz was in good form last year for inter and what happened? he stunk for the national team. Not saying Samuel will stink it up on the national team but he had his chance and its time to move on. I like the idea of calling him up but not to start. Its time for this team to really establish a starting 11 and go with it. All this mixing and matching and not knowing who to call and who to play needs to be resolved. Not saying Diego needs to announce a starting 11 tomrrow but he needs to narrow it down to a couple guys and go with it.
