I was sceptical of the lineup, but Favre was vindicated. Reus was outstanding and Akanji was brilliant. He really has everything to become one of the top defenders in the world. It has to be said Schmelzer did a lot better and Delaney had a very good game. Larsen did well to get the goals. Special mention to Hakimi, who showed us what a a good full back can give.
Hakimi looks like a really good footballer. There was a moment when he had the ball on the wing ahead of Pulisic, with a Nürnberg defender in front of him. Instead of immediately passing the ball back to CP, he did several stepovers and threatened to initiate an attacking dribble, waiting to draw defenders toward himself before releasing the backpass so that his teammate would have more space to operate.
Easy win. Good for the confidence. I still think Reus is slightly off-tune. He did well in that counter attack to setup Hakimi, but not so much when we have possession and we try to build with their defense set. I think all/most of the teams we've faced so far defended deep, and made it hard to build an attack. I'm still waiting to watch good distribution in possession, and creating goals from that. Hakimi's finish for his goal was amazing. Very composed during the match, for his age.
Nice win but let's not get ahead of ourselves just yet, this is newly promoted Nürnberg after all. If we maintain this form for the next five competitive matches perhaps Favre isn't as clueless as I thought, still we must remain on our guard.
Yeah, I watched it again. Really, Nurnberg just couldn't make the right pass in any situation. They turned to ball over so quickly without much provocation. It was good for the team's morale, but I hope they take it for nothing more than a bad team playing terribly. Take your three points and move on. Glad to see Hakimi play well. I think that if this game causes Hakimi to get in more games, then that will be the biggest thing about it. Bruun Larsen looked good, but he did versus other bad teams also, so this didn't move the needle much for me. I was disappointed by Kagawa. And, on the second watching, I wasn't so happy with Pulisic either. Too many cheap turnovers, but maybe this was the right game to try the bag of tricks. I enjoyed my "barely watching because I'm at work" watching a lot more than my more critical second viewing.
Cut the kneejerk muppetry, enjoy the win and just give the team some time. I don't understand why some posters have begun to take shots at the coach just 3 months into his new job. A 7-0 win earns "maybe LF is not clueless" comments, more teeth gnashing if Pulisic, Sancho, Delaney are "weaknesses" and whether LF can name a proper lineup... Or comparisons between Pulisic and Iniesta. Nuremburg gave up after letting in a couple of goals, their players were strolling instead of running to close down space which is why it was so easy to pass through their defence. Good opportunity for rotation and we got a confidence boost. Neverkusen and Monaco will not be walkovers and fan opinion on LF and the players should not swing from one end of the pendulum to the other even if we do not win both games.
The muppetry is not being able to analyse a game. Pulisic and Sancho are weaknesses for a team aiming to compete for major honours. The person knee jerking is you, if you think Sancho's goal or a brilliant run from Pulisic changes that. Talented youngsters, but not at the level required. Playing one of Larsen/Sancho/Pulisic is ok, but to compete with need someone better in the other spot. Delaney had a good game against the worst team in the league, but again that does not mean he is good enough. Nuremburg were terrible, but there were a few differences in this match you failed to notice, because you are too busy trying to be the "sensible fan." When in reality you don't add any meaningful assessment of the match. Reus since the last 10 minutes of Hoffenheim has been sensational. Part of it is not having to play as a striker. His incredible performance has carried the the attack. His movement and link up play have been outstanding. Zagadou is not the best defender yet and even yesterday he made a couple of poor mistakes, which may have been punished against better teams, but he is a brilliant passer of the ball. He has the ability to pass through the lines better than even Akanki and this creates options and leads to attacks, Schmelzer has been poor for a long time and needs replacing, but like Reus (but not to the same level) he has stepped up since the last 10 minutes of Hoffenheim. He stopped giving the defence hospital passes. Then throw in Hakimi giving us an option on the right and you get a great performance. It was promising, but Reus can't be expected to be that brilliant every week. There are questions marks of whether Hakimi will play and Zagadou for all his brilliance in creating attacks is not as solid as Diallo and will be dropped.
Akanji has been outstanding ... but the one thing I fear is Achraf Hakimi. Madrid are not using Odriozolle, their big money right back signing this summer, so it holds to reason that after the two year loan deal Hakimi will return. I don't understand this policy of loaning players in without having an option to sign the player outright ... if Madrid were unwilling to do so, Dortmund should have a list of potential other players they could go for. All this loan does is paper over the cracks for a season or two while we develop another teams player, leaving us with the same size hole at a later time. It's just kicking the can further down the road. Had Dortmund not loaned in Hakimi, he would have spent the year in the reserves at Madrid, or at a low level Spanish club without the exposure that Dortmund provide. Dortmund's business model leaves a lot of questions ...
. Compared to what? Compared to the rest of the roster spots which are less of a problem? I mean, all of us are Reus is the right quality, but otherwise I am not sure who you like more. Akanji is excellent, but I don't think he is more of a finished product than Pulisic (see: Clearances, Straight Up). He will get better with experience. And for current overall quality, I don't think there are any other players with an argument for being currently better. Dahoud? Weigl? Diallo? No. Philipp, Wolf, Schmelzer? No. Sancho has a little more competition, since he is a little more raw. But I think on balance, unless you are considering 80% of the roster a weakness, Sancho and Pulisic aren't weaknesses.
They stopped playing with intensity after 2-0 to save their legs for the more winnable Sat home game versus Duesseldorf. Main reason why it is 7 and not 2 or 3. What more analysis is there to be made from a 7-0 training game? Bürki had little to do. Is it worth analyzing Bayern's annual 8-0 drubbing of HSV unless it is about HSV's defensive weakness. Nuremburg did not run or press at all and the defenders tried to be too creative with the ball in danger areas which let us win possession back using high press. Early relegation candidate.
I fully agree with this, but at the very least it is for 2 years. Alcacer also seems unlikely to want to stay for longer than a year, so we will be back in the market for a striker in the summer. Yes compared tot he rest of the team. This is the overrating and of youngsters and especially flair players. Nearly the entire team have performed at previous clubs or even for Dortmund have performed better than Sancho and Pulisic. All of Burki, Akanji, Diallo, Witsel, Weigl, Hakimi, Reus and even Dahoud have consistently played better than those two. We will see about Alcacer, but he will likely prove to be better than those two as well. So quite the opposite nearly 80 percent of the first 11 or potential first 11 are better than Sancho/Pulisic. Of what should be the first team only Schmelzer is worse. Again this is normal for youngsters and no slight, but it is reality. There's a reason Mbappe is the only teenager to start regularly for a top club. Pulisic and Sancho have more potential than the rest of the team and will most likely end up being better than the rest of them, but they are not their at the moment. It's why Sancho has not been called up for the England team and Pulisic couldn't take the USA to the world cup. It's not the last 4 goals that matter apart from the confidence boost. It's what Dortmund did to go 3-0 up. Whilst Nuremburg stopped playing, so did Dortmund. They took off their star player and didn't play at the same level. The performance to get the first two goals was significantly better than to get the last 5. Having good full backs for a change and a 10 to link up play made all the difference. That being said I don't expect 1. Zagadou to start 2. Schmelzer to keep up his decent form 3. Reus to play that brilliantly.
Remind me why Alcacer would be a one-year rental? It is my understanding that when Dortmund negotiated the loan deal it included an option to buy the player? This leads me to believe that they would have also negotiated with the player for a potential new contract as the loan-year is being played out under his existing Barcelona contract and he is receiving his Barcelona-contracted salary? So wouldn't the player have already agreed to some "deal" should Dortmund decide to activate the option?? The player had to agree to the loan+option terms...or am I missing something?
At this very moment, with no regard for the past, if you had to make a roster to win a single game, you think all of those players are bigger strengths for BVB? Get outta town. Weigl? Right now today? Dahoud? You are starting to seem like a hater.
""Zagadou is not the best defender yet and even yesterday he made a couple of poor mistakes, which may have been punished against better teams, but he is a brilliant passer of the ball. He has the ability to pass through the lines better than even Akanji and this creates options and leads to attacks"" No, he's not the best defender yet. But he was a giant on wednesday, watched the game once more, following him closely. He hasn't made that many mistakes, actually, the worst mistake was signed by Akanji. Though, one can criticise DAZ for giving away corners way too easy, and that he almost made an OG. And yes, his passing quality is superior to both Akanji and Diallo. He's not the fastest defender, but when he gets his huge body in motion, he can keep up with anybody, even if it may take a while before signals from his head come all the way down to his legs... That being said, I would play him tomorrow as wel, either in 4-man backline: Hakimi - Akanji - DAZ - Diallo (Schmeltzer needs a rest) DAZ and Diallo can even switch places or 3-man backline Akanji - DAZ - Diallo (with Hakimi and ??Wolf/Guereiro?? as wingbacks) For those who remember, DAZ played first 5-6 matches of the last season as a LB, and in those matches we almost havn't conceded any goals
Alcacer has had a new baby and he loves the life in Spain. He was reluctant to move to Dortmund. We have an option to buy, but it has to be agreed by Alcacer as well. Suarez is declining rapidly and if he has a truly great season Barcelona probably just bring him back or he will choose to go to another Spanish team. No I am not a hater just giving the truth. It seems a lot of people buy into the hype far too easily. Weigl was a consistent performer for one of the best Dortmund teams in recent memory. Last year he struggled, but still outperformed Pulisic. Dahoud has had his bad moments, but again he has consistently played better than Pulisic this season. I said the same thing about Kagawa, Mkhitaryan and Sokratis. These are players that ahve very popular fan bases and are greatly overrated, but struggle when they move on, because they were never really top performers at the club. Hummels, Gundogan, Reus, Lewandowski and Auba are the world class players the club has had recently. Reus has stayed and too early to judge Auba, but that's why they have gone on to do well at big clubs and win league titles. Pulisic is a talented kid and plays as such. The same with Sancho. As for Zagadou his passing is really great and I was advocating for him to start at left back, but Toprak's injury and Schmelzer picking up form has killed that for me. I don't think we can risk not having a CB on the bench. Schmelzer, someone I have persistently criticised has picked up form. He should have been dropped beforehand, but it's fair he is kept in the team to see if he can keep his form up.
If we cherry pick each player's best stretch of career play, no matter how many years ago or if even with BVB (I'm looking at you, Burki), then I am willing to entertain the thought. But that isn't the claim you made.
Even now Weigl had a very good game in the CL and scored on Wednesday. So even this season he is matching Pulisic. However, even if we take it back last seaosn, where Weigl was poor he still outperformed Pulisic. As I said Reus hasn't even had the best start to the season due to playing out of position for so many games. Look at how his stats compare to Sancho and Pulisic. That's top level. It's unfair to compare them to Reus, but Mkhitaryan and Dembele are fair comparisons. Kagawa before he left or even a young Gotze of the same age. When the two of them are putting in performances like that week in week out then we can get excited. Here are some stats to put things in perspective. Gotze 2010/11 he was 18, had 8 goals and 11 assist. Gotze 2011/12 he was 19, had 9 goals and 9 assist. Gotze 2012/13 he was 20 years old had 17 goals and 14 assist. Dembele 2016/17 he was 19 years old, had 11 goals and 20 assist. That's what is expected for a top team. EDIT In fact I will even throw in some Mkhitaryan stats, who was regarded as a flop for his first two years and not good enough. Only in his final year did he have a good season. Mkhitaryn first season 13 goals 10 assist not good enough. Second season was a complete disaster. 5 goals and 5 assist. Third season a good season, 19 goals 24 assist.
Here are Kagawa's stats 2011/12 17 goals and 10 assist. Now we compare those stats with Pulisic's best so far of 7 goals and 8 assist. So if Pulisic puts up numbers and performances like those other players, who weren't even world class for Dortmund then I will talk about him like a top and key player to the squad. When he puts up numbers like Mkhitaryan did in his first couple of seasons then I will use 'kids gloves' because he is a kid, but I am not going to go crazy and start describing average to good performances in absolute terms as brilliant. This maybe the season where Pulisic begins to fulfil his tremendous potential and I hope so, but so far he has not started the season like he will (it's still very early) and until then he is not performing at the level we need to challenge for trophies.
Again you are missing your own point. It is about whether he is a weakness on his own roster relative to his teammates. You have now started arguing against other players in other years about whether he is world class. He is not world class, your stats prove that and are perfectly fine with me. He is also, today, not a weakness on this roster.
First of all those Gotze and Dembele should be sobering and put into perspective Pulisic's current level. Second of all I purposely didn't compare him to world class players. None of Gotze, Dembele, Mkhitaryan or Kagawa were world class at Dortmund. I compared him with other support attacking players and a couple his age, to show the standard required for Dortmund to succeed. If I were to compare him to what the world class players like Lewandowski/Auba/Reus were doing then that would really be unfair, especially if I were to show what these players did against the likes of CL winning Madrid sides. I stand by what I have said. I expect, I repeat I expect Alcacer to be decent and thre same for Hakimi. I have not seen Alcacer, but have seen a lot of Hakimi and despite being weaker than all the other Madrid players, he will do alright at Dortmund. If this turns out to be the case then we have 3 positions where we lack the required quality. LB 2/3 attacking positions behind the striker. Burki Hakimi Akanji Diallo Witsel/Weigl Dahoud Reus Alcacer ??? All play above the level Pulisic has shown. The only player there is even any doubt about is Dahoud. WIth Alcacer I admit I am going on what I have heard, because I have not seen him. The three areas we need to improve to challenge are Schmelzer Pulisic Larsen/Gotze/Kagawa/Sancho In a perfect world we would either play Zagadou/Raphael or new signing to replace Schmelzer. Gotze would somehow rediscover his old form or we by someone to take the burden of Reus. Then Pulisic would start most games with no pressure knowing Reus/Gotze are carrying the burden.
I've never believed in the Gotze experiment! The answer is Ozil! Especially when it seemed that he was unhappy at Arsenal. I wonder if that can ever happen.
I was curious how pundits rated Dortmund's players last season. Kicker's evaluation is brutal but frankly hard to argue: basically they said Reus and Akanji were the team's only good players last year. Furthermore they declared that the Bundesliga as a whole had zero world class performers. GK CB FB DM AM WG CF In years past, BVB had multiple world class players and/or good players peaking at close to world class level. It can be both true that Pulisic is one of the better players in the team at the moment, yet hasn't demonstrated that he can be one of the league's top players at his position over the course of a full season. Hopefully it happens this year. Right now, Reus is the only guy you can expect to deliver points for the team on a consistent basis (...if he can stay healthy). Pulisic, Alcacer, Philipp, Kagawa, Dahoud, et al. will show up with a MotM performance once in a while, but it's a far cry from the Klopp and Tuchel days.
I am sorry, I enjoy discussions, but I am not from this new age where every opinion needs to be respected just, because it is an opinion. Opinions are not preferences. They should be logically based on facts and experience. Of course they are subjective to a certain extent and there will always be disagreements, but there should be a logic and reason to them. However, if someone said Brandt is better than Ronaldo, then that is a foolish opinion and I will outright say that. Weigl has been a key player for a team that got a record points total for a team finishing 2nd. He has many outstanding performances for Dortmund. He has struggled last year, but even then he has played at a reasonable level. If you give valid facts and reasons, then I will respect the opinion even if I disagree. We are grown men (and maybe women), discussing football about a team we love, not a bunch of teenagers in 'safe space.'
I guess this isn't how it comes across. It is a fact that I have watched Weigl every single time he has played for more than a calendar year and many of the previous years (maybe 60 of his 85 BVB appearances?) and that I don't think he is a strength right now. That whole safe space jaunt is about what? That seems like you are projecting a difference you are having with some other person into this discussion. Net, we disagree on Weigl and Dahoud primarily in one direction and Pulisic in the other. I feel you are holding onto Weigl and Dahoud's high-water mark rather than their typical performance or even their current trajectory. I also think you give too much credit for Diallo's limited sample size. I think we agree roughly on Sancho. I think you are too harsh on Pulisic because you feel that you need to balance out those who are in love with his every move. My primary gripe is that you state things as if they were more than your opinion, as if they were indubitable. But that is your right. As much as it is mine to say what I think I see.