Rebuilding the NT -2018 Qualifiers

Last I checked, Argentina hasn't been good under the last 3 coaches (Bauza included). They haven't been good under ANY coach this entire Qualifier. You sure it's the coach? Last I checked Martino, Sampaoli, and Bauza were all top level coaches before they set foot on the Argentine NT. Not even Simeone, Zidane, or Mourinho could fix them right now. It goes deeper than just a coach.

 

The NT unfortunately doesn't have a Jonathan Alvez.

 

LMAO...homie, with a line of 3 in the NT we'll get chewed up and spit out and laughed at. There's no leader in that back line and most importantly, that style of futbol has not been practiced at NT level. Developing a line of 3 takes a few game at NT level to get adjusted and it doesn't always work. You have to have the right players. We don't even have the center-mids to do that. We don't even have the lungs to do that. If we were to do that Antonio would play right and Renato left. I highly doubt Antonio will be able to run up and down and cover the entire right wing. Renato maybe, but his defensive skills don't exactly give me full confidence that he'd be able to play that role. Maybe someone like Ramirez could do it, but in Quito....hell no. He'd be with his tongue out too. The only two coaches I'd allow to implement a line of 3 on the NT are Bauza and Sampaoli. #1 because they've done it in Ecuador (for Emelec and Lisa) #2 they were pretty successful with it and #3 because they are familiar with Ecuadorian futbol. Celico has played a line of 3 even a line of 2 at times for those who are familiar with his career at U. Catolica. The man most recently (in the last year or two) stopped playing that line of 2 bullsh*t that he'd pull sometimes. You ever see Catolica get raped some games by 5, 6 or 7 goals? That was because his teams barely defended. Took this guy a few years of ass whopping to acknowledge that his teams had to improve defensively. That's why IMO his teams from the last two years have been more balanced. But I still don't trust him. On the attack, yes his teams can be a threat, but defensively he's not the man. And we don't need that.

As far as the list, I think this team needed 3 more players: Gabriel Achilier, Miller Bolanos, and Mario Pineida (who is injured). Also, if Dida Dominguez continues getting playing time in Colon and gets back on his flow, then we definitely need to include him as well.

Players who are not NT material on this list?
Carlos Feraud- take this kid's free kick away and he's absolute garbage. Mediocre player.
Luis Segovia- This kid is barely making it in El Nacional and somehow he's on the NT. Not NT material and VERY ripe.
Johnny Uchuari- Pretty good season in Cuenca, but I'm sorry...this kid only is made for the small teams. There's a reason IDV didn't keep him last year. If he were the real deal then BSC or Emelec would've snatched him. He failed in Liga the one time he had a chance to shine in a big team.
Ayrton Preciado- I don't know why, but this kid does not convince me. At the very most he'll be as good as Fidel Martinez, but not even. I'll have him on the MAYBE list since we don't have much options.

Unfortunately players like John Cifuente and Michael Estrada aren't in the same moment they were in during the first semester of this season. But how conveniently....NOW they get their chance. Smh...

I'm GLAD to see Xavier Arreaga, Pedro Ortiz, Jose F. Cevallos Jr, and Joao Plata on the list. I think it's about time they got their opportunity. These will be the highlights for me to keep an eye on.

Also, I'm interested in seeing what Carlos Garces, Tuca Ordonez (although he's 32), Jacob Murillo, and Jefferson Intriago have to offer.

 

No, he's not. He just wasn't included.

Celico mentioned he isn't a fan of how Cazares plays. I will say this....Cazares is a crack. In Atletico Mineiro he is the second time goal scorer in their history according the some publications I saw recently. He's amazing at club level and in top competitions. Unfortunately, a player like Cazares, Sornoza, Gabriel Cortez, etc. isn't always going to work well under every coach. Some coaches don't play with 10s. Cazares is similar to Sornoza when you take a look at him. Can he play on the wings? No. He only plays centrally. They play like enganches or mediapuntas and that's it. Gabriel Cortez can play on the wing or centrally. Miller can too (he plays anywhere on the attacking half). Cevallos can play behind the striker or also as a central midfielder. By saying this, my point is that one dimensional players like Cazares or Sornoza have trouble making it under certain systems of playing. Quinteros never played with one dimensional players. Not even in Emelec. All his players from Burbano, Miller, Mena, Mondaini, Gimenez etc. played anywhere up front. I may be forgetting a name from the 2013-2015 Emelec. But if you take a look at it, Quinteros NEVER played with players that played only one position. He never liked playing with a target man either. That's why none of them made it under him. That's why even Marcos Caicedo, a player who could mostly only play left wing at the time, didn't make it under him.

Going back to this, I'm glad Celico didn't include Cazares. If the player isn't of his liking for how he wants his team to play, then why waste a spot? Looking back, I feel like Cazares has been a waste of time. We're wasting his time and he's wasting away a spot on our squad that could be someone else's. I'd give Sornoza more tries out of curiosity when he's in top form, but as of now no. I'm personally more interested in seeing Jose Francisco Cevallos Jr. on the team b/c he has the potential to be an awesome NT player. He's always had it in him. He has NT written all over him. His only issue lately has been making that jump to consolidating himself. He was more of a consolidated player 2 years ago vs. now (at club level). But even so, I'd say he's of better quality now, despite not always being a starter.

Going back to Cazares, Sornoza, etc. Players like these would shine under someone like Bauza. He plays with 10s and his teams actually stand out with these type of players. You can say he milks these players for what they're worth.

 

I'm curious to see how we do in Quito physically in this next round simply because Quinteros' favorite excuse is that we can't play in high altitude anymore and that it's not our ally any longer. I bet you under Celico you won't see players with their tongue out asking for oxygen. So Quinteros can take his little bullsh*t excuse elsewhere.

 

I think Arreaga is in a better moment than Aimar, but I also think that Aimar has more NT experience and has been with the squad longer and knows his teammates better. He's faster than Arreaga and IMO we need fast defenders vs. Chile. I'm fine with Arreaga starting, but if Aimar starts I won't be mad. I think he can do fine pairing with Arboleda. Both of them are fast. Arreaga has really good timing, he's not slow per say (like Mina or Erazo), and he's clean with his playing. He's having an excellent season IMO.

As far as Cevallos Jr. I would take him off the starting 11 simply b/c we need speed vs. Chile. Cevallos can defend, but it's not his strength. It's a skill he needs to work on. If this game were in Quito, then YES I'd use Cevallos, but because it's not in Quito we shouldn't experiment with him in Chile. I think Cevallos Jr. can be a very crucial NT. He's always had it in him. It's been seen in the youth national teams, in Liga (internationally and locally), and in the senior NT (in the friendlies). There's no doubt he's got NT written all over him. But for this game vs. Chile in Santiago, I'd go with Jefferson Intriago because he has more pace, better defensive skills, and he can move up and down the field consistently at the rate we will be needing him to move.

I think it's a good idea to put Tuka Ordonez up front b/c of his physical presence. For a big guy this man has pretty good speed and fight in him. Definitely worth a try since we have nothing to lose at this point.

I'd go with:

Banguera; Velasco, Aimar, Arboleda, Ramirez; Orejuela, Intriago; Antonio, Enner, Renato; Ordonez