Pre-Season Assesment FCB [Archive]

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SirManchester

30 Jul 2005, 06:13 PM

Well, pre-season is pretty much done with and the league will kick off next week....results have been terrific in my opinion, aside from the Vfb game which Stuttgart deserved to win anyways.

I'm pretty impressed with Karimi, he pulled his weight in good fashion, getting some goals and assists, Magath seems to be satisfied with his attitude and game, looking forward to see how he can transfer this to where it counts.

JPG looked pretty good also, scoring quite often, let's hope he is more consistent this season and gets some more playing time. I'm not too sure on Ottl since I haven't seen all the games but he's played a decent amount and heard nothing really negative about him.

How does everyone see this Bayern side going into the new campaign?

BMike86

30 Jul 2005, 09:59 PM

I'm pretty impressed with Karimi, he pulled his weight in good fashion, getting some goals and assists, Magath seems to be satisfied with his attitude and game, looking forward to see how he can transfer this to where it counts.

JPG looked pretty good also, scoring quite often, let's hope he is more consistent this season and gets some more playing time. I'm not too sure on Ottl since I haven't seen all the games but he's played a decent amount and heard nothing really negative about him.

I agree with these two goals against pretty good Japanese clubs Guerrero is looking real good. I would probably like him starting next to Makaay in the first match against Monchengladbach. Santa Cruz could also give Pizarro or Guerrero a run for their money.

I see just about anyone starting over Ze, I see Karimi in the starting lineup preferably on left side where I love him. I see Hargreaves playing defense and like it. Demichelis was a bit better at defensive midfield.

Without Lahm I see the starting lineup like this :D

--------------Makaay--------Guerrero---------------
----------------------Ballack------------------------
-----Karimi----------------------------Deisler--------
--------------------Demichelis-----------------------
---Hargeaves----Ismael----Lucio------Sagnol--------
----------------------Kahn-------------------------

Schweinsteiger, Brazzo, and Pizarro will all put up a fight as well but with who Magath is playing and the quality of the players this is what I see for now. :)

XIIGermanIIX

30 Jul 2005, 10:14 PM

eissman

31 Jul 2005, 12:22 AM

I would say the team is on its way earlier than last... a bit slow going last season. "The Ballack Distraction" (playing at a website near you) will be nice to be done and over with.

Karimi is a solid pick up. Ismael will be the right fit, but he and Lucio will have some bad moments no don't in the run of play first before they get into the right partnership at back. Santa Cruz is hopefully a legitimate candidate at striker, therefore giving us three good front-runners to play along with Makaay.

Concerning Salihamidzic, Ze Roberto, Hargreaves, Schweini and Deisler, I think Schweinsteiger once healthy will be in the lineup again. Brazzo, Deisler will likely be the two fighting for the wide positions on opening day, but Hargreaves has been getting some good playing time. Who knows. Demichelis and Ballack seem to be the only for sures in my book. I am not too concerned with the midfield as we have an abundance of talent there.

Kahn is solid. Rensing is a quality back up. As for the rest of the back line... aside from the obvious choices at centerback, Sagnol is a lock on the RB position and Lizarazu will most likely start at LB. However, I still say Hargreaves and Brazzo can play in back as well, at least until Gorlitz and Lahm are back to full strength.

All in all, we have MORE talent on this team than last term and it will be a nightmare I feel to continuously please everyone on this roster. I say someone or two will be gone by February.

SirManchester

31 Jul 2005, 02:26 PM

Yea, I'm worried about that also...too many quality players not starting, but this helps in European competitions.....come on, lets face it, who wouldn't love to have Brazzo against teams like Barca and Madrid? :D

I don't think Demi is a sure thing, Magath will alternate between him and Owen throughout the season or at least until he finds that one is ultimately more effective and consistent. I feel the same about Schweinie and Ze Roberto, Magath isn't writing Ze off just yet, and he knows the potential in Basti but Ze extended for a reason.

Up front, I don't see anyone else starting besides Roy and Piza, at least not now.

On Karimi, I don't know if he would be good on the left, he is a central attacking playmaking midfielder, he just likes to take runs down the wings.

BMike86

31 Jul 2005, 02:39 PM

I dont think Deisler has a starting position... hargreaves is more of a midfielder, and i see Lizarazu with a starting spot on the left defensive side. Schweini needs to be in that team, not sure where they'll put him but hargreaves off and schweini on the right, guerrero is still young and not as good as pizarro either.

If you have been following Bayern, Demi has been playing midfield and Hargreaves has been starting at defense recently. Schweinsteiger does have a chance to break into the lineup but at what costs?? Will Ballack leave, will he out play Karimi, Deisler, Demi?? Also the striker on the other side of Makaay is up for grabs, but more than likely in the end Pizarro may win the spot.

bayern_man

31 Jul 2005, 04:58 PM

IMO,as long as theres no injuries and no more players leave it should be
-----------------------------Kahn--------------------------------

------Sagnol---------Ismael--------Lucio-------------Liza------

-----------------------------Demichelis-------------------------

-----Schweinsteiger---------------------------Ze Roberto----

----------------------------Ballack------------------------------

------------Makaay----------------------Pizarro----------------

Maybe Karimi or possibly even Deisler/Salihamidzic in place of Ze Roberto/Schweini,but i think if Ze and Schweini continue their good form from the end of last season then they should get priority. Also Guerrero/Santa Cruz could replace Piza or maybe even Makaay if hes not playing well,i cant really see how the defense could change until Gorlitz and Lahm recover,maybe Salihamidzic/Demichelis or even Hargreaves could temporarily cover at the back.

marts1x

01 Aug 2005, 03:22 PM

If you have been following Bayern, Demi has been playing midfield and Hargreaves has been starting at defense recently. Schweinsteiger does have a chance to break into the lineup but at what costs?? Will Ballack leave, will he out play Karimi, Deisler, Demi?? Also the striker on the other side of Makaay is up for grabs, but more than likely in the end Pizarro may win the spot.

that was one game...

BMike86

01 Aug 2005, 03:32 PM

that was one game...

two, lol :D

XIIGermanIIX

04 Aug 2005, 01:41 AM

BMike86

04 Aug 2005, 10:45 AM

IMO,as long as theres no injuries and no more players leave it should be
-----------------------------Kahn--------------------------------

------Sagnol---------Ismael--------Lucio-------------Liza------

-----------------------------Demichelis-------------------------

-----Schweinsteiger---------------------------Ze Roberto----

----------------------------Ballack------------------------------

------------Makaay----------------------Pizarro----------------

UGHHH!!!!

I am going to barf, past tense, I just barfed :p

Ze?? Geez, with all the talent we have, Ze?? Honestly, I would rather see Karimi, Deisler, and Brazzo (all better) over Ze for that spot. Even though Deisler is more of a right side player. Liza, I can deal with because it is the truth, until Lahm comes back and kicks his old arse!! Also I think Demi and Hargreaves will be switching off at defensive mid, and I don't mind. :D

BayernWake

04 Aug 2005, 11:06 AM

UGHHH!!!!

I am going to barf, past tense, I just barfed :p

Ze?? Geez, with all the talent we have, Ze?? Honestly, I would rather see Karimi, Deisler, and Brazzo (all better) over Ze for that spot. Even though Deisler is more of a right side player. Liza, I can deal with because it is the truth, until Lahm comes back and kicks his old arse!! Also I think Demi and Hargreaves will be switching off at defensive mid, and I don't mind. :D

Brazzo better than Ze? KARIMI better than Ze? Are you serious? Ze is solid. He had his slumps last season, but he is solid, and I'm thrilled he re-signed.

BMike86

04 Aug 2005, 11:18 AM

Brazzo better than Ze? KARIMI better than Ze? Are you serious? Ze is solid. He had his slumps last season, but he is solid, and I'm thrilled he re-signed.

well atleast you can agree about Deisler, unless you disagree and just forgot to mention him :D Brazzo has been great in his opportunities whenever I watch him.

extranjero

04 Aug 2005, 11:43 AM

Bayern lacks (quality) depth in central defense and among their forwards.

Lucio and Ismael are very good players but who is going to substitute when one of them is injured, out of form or booked?

Magath is talking of Demichelis and Jeremies. But Demichelis is a liability in central defense because he is not fast enough and gives away way too many free kicks near the penalty area and even penalties IMO. He is probably also needed in central midfield because he is better able to protect the middle of the field and the defense than Hargreaves is. Hargreaves lacks tactical understanding and gives the ball away too much which is damning in such an important position like defensive midfield.

Jeremies is not a centre back. He is too small to play in central defense and when he played there he didn't convince in the past.

In attack Maakay is beyond criticism at this point. He is one of the best strikers in the world and has become increasingly more involved in Bayern's play too which was the main criticism in his first season. But Pizarro is not of the same caliber. He has a good strike rate in the league but his european strike rate is not much better than Jancker's. Last season Pizarro showed some improvement in the CL but to make up for it he scored only 11 goals for the second season in a row in the league and didn't score once away from home. I think Pizarro will have to raise his game when Bayern wants to succeed in all competitions.

The main problem in attack is the lacking depth though. Pizarro may not yet make the most of his talent but he is still a good striker to have. Santa Cruz, on the other hand, has scored only 25 goals and assisted only 8 times in 125 games. Even when one considers that he was young when he joined Bayern and that he didn't always play from the start the simple fact is that SC is not effective enough to substitute for either Maakay or Pizarro. Also, SC has not shown any signs of improvement for the last couple years and it's at least questionable if he will ever fullfill the potential which brought him to the club. When SC stagnates on his current level he should be dropped altogether.

Guerrero is still too young and unproven to be a reliable backup in important games. Coming on as a substitute against a tiring team in the domestic league is not the same challenge as starting against an elite team in the CL. When Bayern had to play Guerrero in Arsenal and in Chelsea Guerrero showed effort but didn't really pose a threat.

There are other players like Scholl, Karimi or Ze Roberto who could play up front but they are not forwards or even strikers and should be better utilized elsewhere.

I think Bayern should _really_ hope that they avoid injuries to either of their two starting central defenders. They should also hope that either Santa Cruz or Guerrero make a leap forward in class.

Dead Fingers

04 Aug 2005, 12:42 PM

Something from UEFA

http://www.uefa.com/footballcentral/news/Kind=2/newsId=323799.html

Bayern braced for title defence
Thursday, 4 August 2005
By Mark Bennett

FC Bayern München will be seeking their sixth title in eight years when the 2005/06 Bundesliga season kicks off on Friday, but FC Schalke 04 and VfL Stuttgart could both challenge.

BMike86

04 Aug 2005, 01:09 PM