Re: Re: Donovan replaces Forlan I am not sure if out running your opponent is what makes a winner, quickness has its advantages when going for a loose ball. Otherwise it is what you do with the ball and the end result of that play. Is Donovan a ball winner? can he handle those long balls that come 30-50 meters in the air? You all see how Ronaldo is falling over each time he gets touched. Would Donovan be able to hold and control the ball at the slightest shoulder challange? is Donovan tough enough for the english game ? This are all questions that we need to ask. No one will argue his skills , vision, passing ability. Ronaldo has great skill, but at the end of his actions very little positives come out of it. Soccer is a team sport, focus should be how to help the team win and not onto himself. He could dribble the entire team and if his last pass goes wrong, or his shot goes 20 meters off the post, he has done nothing for the team. There are a lot of skillful players out there but rare are those that know how to use the god given skill they posses.
In the Confed Cup, he drew a penalty against Brazil and it wasn't called, then in the second half he got behind the defense and forced a great save from Dida on our only shot on goal. Against Turkey he sent in a perfect cross into Beasley who headed home for the 1-0 lead. (one more assist than Scholes had against Turkey in his last game) When was the last time Scholes scored for England by the way? Then in the Gold Cup against Brazil's U23s, Donovan played a tremendous game and would have been the best USA player if not for the fact that Carlos Bocanegra had the best game I've ever seen by a defender. Against a Welsh team featuring a half dozen or so Prem players, Donovan was _the_ dominant player out there, finding players with precision passes and uncorking some electric runs including a run that was beyond comprehension (the keeper made a great save) at the end of the match. I checked the "beeb's" website after the game, and most of the Welsh fans were generally unimpressed, except for Donovan who they called a "great player." Donovan obviously was a major threat against Germany in the World Cup. My point is not that Scholes is bad, but that you're holding Donovan to a different standard than you're holding other players. I'm not arguing for Donovan to replace Scholes. God no, Scholes is one of the few players creating for ManU right now. But Fletcher and Forlan aren't getting the job done, and Ronaldo, while talented, as been a bit more style than substance thus far. Tottenham was going to buy Diego from Santos for about $12 million. You likely could get Donovan for half that at most and maybe wind up with a more versatile and valuable player. They have the money, and they could use a player with his creative abilities right now.
Manchester United do not need a player like Donovan playing up front with van Nistelrooy, they need to get Solskjaer back. Man U already has plenty of speed and pace on the wings with Giggs and Ronaldo. The trio of RVN, Solskjaer, and Scholes up the middle is a devestating strikeforce. So I don't think that Forlan or Donovan are good enough to start on this team. Donovan certainly could contribute playing in any of the forward or wing positions, but Man U has better primary options. Although Forlan is infamous for missing some wide open goals, he is a better finisher and can get off great shots. This is how I think Man U should play: RVN---Solskjaer Giggs-----Scholes-----Ronaldo ---Keane--- O'Shea---Ferdinand---Silvestre---Neville ---Howard--- So in conclusion, if either RVN or Solskjaer get hurt, Forlan would be the better replacement. Donovan I think could do OK in Giggs, Scholes, or Ronaldo's positions.
Well, this is an interesting thread, if only because it forces us fans to imagine Donovan in a specific context on a major European team -- and whether or not he could really hack it in that specific set-up. I think he could, especially considering his versatility and upside. The larger point is that Man U are obviously quite desperate to crack the American sports market and to do so are very keen to land a marquee US player, one who could fire Americans' imagination more than Tim Howard. No other US player is ready to step onto the pitch today with such a team as is Donovan, and no other US player has as high a profile with the American sports public. If Donovan is really as good as many of us believe, then $6 million is a relative steal. So what's holdinng Man U back -- or a similiar powerhouse -- if he's so good and such a nice fit? Are we fans wrong, are ManU and other blowing it, or is it just a matter of time?
Re: Donovan replaces one Neville actually, what's missing - and it pains me to say this - is beckham.
One thing keeping Euro clubs away from Donovan might be the prospect of dealing with the whole Bayer Leverkusen contract mess.
LD as of 2003: Strength *Speed *Excellent ball skills *Great vision *Capable of great passing Weakness *Not a great finisher, just an above average finisher *Lack of mental fortitude, especially when things are not going his way *Lack of physical strength -- he can draw fouls but he can also be pushed around, especially in the absence of MLS refs *Lack of height and not great in the air in general Most of his weakness can be improved or even become his strength if he’s willing to work hard and becomes more mature. However, right now he is not ManU starting material.
Yeah, Bayer's reasons might have partly to do with not wanting to face Donovan in CL, which they'll never have to do as long as he's in MLS. Bayer knows his potential. They first spotted it when Donovan was 16. They've retained his rights for a reason, even when he didn't fit into their current coaching structure. They've referred to him as "the big harvest". Even if they don't need him in their line-up, they're not going to let him transfer for the bargain that Tim Howard is.
ever try buying Landon in CM04? Those bastards want nothing less then 16 Million. As Ajax I could never afford it. Until I sold John O'Brien to AC Milan for 36 Million. But then I couldn't afford to sign Donovan. He wanted 2.3 Mill per year or something like that.
I disagree with him being just an above avergae finisher. I've seen too many remarkable finishes from him to callhim anything but a great finisher. A lot of goals he scored most players wouldn't even attempt. Physically, the kid is starting to get really strong. These days, its him dishing out the punishment. And he can even bull through defenders. Watch him score a goal, and then watch him rip off his shirt. The dude's ripped. But I agree with you about his mentality and his lack of height. He got his head involved again recently vs the Metrostars.
I believe Donovan has a minimum fee release clause, or at least I read that somewhere fairly credible. I believe something like 6 or 7 million gets it done.
Pretty much sums up every top goalscorer in soccer. They all blow more chances than they convert. I tend to believe that Donovan is in the same class as Forlan, but this thread is a bit harsh on Diego. He's a very good striker. Kevin
From the recent games I saw (a few SJQ and a few USMNT games on TV), he still far from a great finisher. Objectively, a great finisher would not score a mere 12 goals (even that number is mainly due to a couple of hot games) at the MLS level. His finishing is NOT consistent enough to be considered great. While Forlan is not a great finisher, RVN is. LD is NOT close to that caliber yet.
Donovan's relatively low goals total is not due to missing shots, it's due to not taking shots. As discussed in another thread, Donovan's shooting percentage is amongst the league leaders. Whether that means he's a great finisher or not, I don't know, but if you're going to use that statistic, you need to look at how many times he shoots as well. If our best field player is only almost as good as Uruguay's 2nd string forward, how are we better than they are?
The problem all US out-field players have in breaking into European soccer is that the coaches have difficulty in establishing how good they are because they play against different teams. Goalkeepers are slightly different in that there's pretty much only one requirement - keep the ball out of the net. Out-field players have to combine with other out-field players. I think it's going to be a case of US players having to be head and shoulders better than the people around them to get a fair crack of the whip - which is a shame and rather unfair - but that's the way it is. The other way to do it, of course, is for them to come over as youngsters... Which reminds me - how are Szelela and the other fella doing if they're over here?... indeed, are they over here?...anyone heard?
Szetela's not over yet, and I'm not sure he will be until Poland joins the EU. Spector, Karbassiyoon and Cooper are the latest Yanks to head to prem teams. There's a kid who may, or may not be heading to Boro soon.
here is a question for ya.......January comes around,,,Man U gets BL to sell. What does landon do? A. Stay at home with mom and dad and remain a starter for SJ? B. Go play for the most popular sports team in the world and possibly see alot of pine time? My guess is A. As long as MLS is around, I don't think Landon will ever test the waters overseas.
Although I recently began a thread asking whether Forlan is the worst finisher of all times I don't think that Donovan is as good as he is... Donovan and Forlan are similar in that they both can score pretty spectacular goals... lets rate them... Speed---- Adv Forlan, if there is one thing he is good for he is quick as hell First Touch-- Landon all the way Aerial Ability-- Forlan is one of the better headers of the ball for ManU Shooting almost even, although Forlan can miss some sitters its not that he cannot aim, its mostly just nerves, with more pt he will get better, advantage goes to Landon Flexibility-- very very close, Landon can play Attacking midfield and striker but Forlan is as comfortable on left as he is right and is a fairly decent crosser. Advantage Forlan (very slight) Strength-- Forlan Experience-- Forlan All in all I give it to Forlan, not because he is so much better, cuz he aint, but because he has already played for ManU has a feel for the EPL and what is really important is aerial ability and strength because so many crosses come in from the wing and so many long balls are played requiring strikers to hold the ball up for the midfielders... Donovan has not played against top flight defenders and Forlan has, with limited success but I believe he can become an adequate forward, I would wait for Landon to develop a bit more... The problem with Forlan is that right now, he is ManU's back up for Ruud, so it leaves us all worried, if he were 3rd string I would have no such qualms..
he isn't faster than Donovan. Almost no one is. You could probably call that a push at worst. I disagree with finishing (I explained my own reasoning above), but evrything else I agree with.
How funny, he was asked that question about a month ago in a radio interview. His answer? "Manchester United? I'm on the plane yesterday."
Forlan needs to move onto a team where he'll play regularly, the inconsistent playing time is killing him. As far as who is better, Forlan or Donovan, I don't watch Donovan enough to say, and I doubt that any of you people pushing for Donovan have seen enough of Forlan to be as adamant as you are on this thread.
How many games do I need to see? 100? 150? 200? I've seen him at least 20 times. Again, explain this to me: If Landon Donovan is our best field player and Diego Forlan is a 2nd teamer for Uruguay, how in the world could we possibly be better than Uruguay? I think we are better than Uruguay, so...
The US can be considered a better team even if Donovan was not better than Forlan because for all of Uruguay's talent, they do not play well together at all. Uruguay's national has for years been beset by problems with the egos of the players, clashes between agents and and the national side, poor coaching and many other problems. In my mind Bruce Arena is a great coach and has the U.S. national side playing as a team pretty well when they need to be. I have high hopes for the new Uruguayan coach. He's putting together a pretty good and entertaining side, plus it looks like Forlan is now a starter. As far as how many times you've seen him, I hope those 20 times were in full games like you've seen Donovan, because I know I have a hard time rating a player when I only see him come on in the middle of games, some players thrive on it, and others do not.