The all-purpose Alex thread

Any updates, I want to help as much as I can..

We should ALL send e-mails to his website and tell him about what we are trying to do and tell him about the alexnacopa website. This is his website, he often responds to people so I think it would help.

http://www.alex10.com.br/

 

Well, a preliminary version of the site is up... we are working on it as I speak to you. The best help we can get is if people find articles (like the very helpful one that SoccerScout posted) and start putting pressure by showing people the video, writing e-mails etc. Check your PM r9.

 

Indeed anyones passing is sad..Tele for sure...but I still blame his coaching for Brazils loss in 82, not to mention 86. Brazil should have won that 82 wc. But yes rest in peace Tele.

 

A bad day for football... let's hope his legacy influences this team.

 

Ok, I will insist here: there would be no 82 team if it was not for Tele. We might even end up winning the WC but the team that we know and love as the 82 team would not exist with out Tele.

 

Redshift,

You gotta ease up a little. There is no bigger fan of Alex than me. I even went to a Turskish restaurant in N.Y. City last year to watch a Fenerbahce-Galatassaray game because I missed him so much! For the longest time I carried the Alex torch on these boards, but eventually you get tired of waiting for a player to seize the moment. You are choosing to block out what far too many Alex selecao performances look like. He is a very complicated player. I definitely want him on the squad, but I think the starting lineup is a stretch.

P.S.- I still think it's cool what you're doing with the site. I will contribute in any way I can to get him on the plane to Germany. I have a couple of pretty good comps. Should I email them to you?

 

Back to Alex. I really like redshift suggestion. A team with Alex, Kaka, R. Gaucho and Ronaldo would be fantastic. I would have Kaka a little bit deeper back, though. He can trace back much better than Alex and cover a much larger space in the field.

But I also agree with you that the current team should start. This is a problem in exercise like that: we all have an ideal team. And our ideal team remains an ideal team no matter what. The only poor soul that does not have the right to have an ideal team is the coach: he have the real team. When he put his ideal team the one that actualy perform is the real one and not the ideal the he had imaginate.

 

Good post. I placed Kaka up front because I want to make it clear that it's a 4-3-3... but Kaka would track back and run down the flank like only he can.

 

I am not worried about making him a titular, I just want Alex on the selecao. If he's there, winning the starting spot is up to him. I think that if he goes he will get the spot at some point. The problem is that Parreira very seldom lets both play together at the same time -- and that is what I want to see. There have been times where Alex helped the reserves beat the titulares with some spectacular passes... I believe it made the news in Brasil.

I don't think there are good LB options, and I would rather free up a spot for another player.

 

Hi, Redshift, my first post here. I am from Hong Kong, a Selecao fan and an Alex fan as well. Thanks for setting up that website. It would be a disgrace if somebody as talented as Alex can never play in the World Cup. Are you going to produce an English version? If you don't have time, I am willing to help, though actually English is my second language and I don't really know Portguese. But I can try to translate the content of your website into English using a translation tool and try to 'polish' it into 'understandable' Enlgish. Hopefully this will work. Please send me a pm if you think it's a good idea.

 

Thanks for your support. Right now I have to get going, but there are plenty of things that can be done if you want to help -- I will PM you later.

We intend to first get the Portuguese version up and ready because that is the main target audience... unless we can generate enough pressure domestically in Brasil, it's likely that he won't get the chance to go. I do, however, intend to make an English translation as soon as it is viable to do so. If Alex is convocado, we intend to keep the site up as a way of following his progress at WC -- and at that point there will definately be an English version. The main concern right now is limited time... any pressure from outside of Brasil will be excellent, but we really need the Brasilian people behind him if he is going to be selected.

 

Thanks, but the design is by the same guy that did the video Gabbef. I merely set up the server to host it and participated in the discussions that led to this moment. If he hadn't made the compilation, I wouldn't have contacted him and maybe the site wouldn't exist. He deserves the credit.

The site is still far from completion and tons of work still needs to be done. Probably by Monday it should be further along. It will be awesome once it is finished. Alex is playing the decisive game of the Turkish superleague tomorrow, if he wins we will be publicising his accomplishments and through a contact we have with one of the administrators of his official site, we will want to get in touch with Alex do an interview to put on ours. =)

Cross your fingers.

 

Out of curiosity, and for use on the site, I decided to compile statistics on scoring and assists for the 05-06 season. To keep things reasonably simple, I decided to use only first division league games and champion's league games and included only a select group of big name attacking players. Here is what I found (the results are quite revealing):

Name-------/-GP--(L + CL)-/----Goals-----/--Assists-----/-GPG- /-APG- /-Offensive Index
Ronaldinho-/ 26 + 10 = 36 / 15 + 07 = 22 / 13 + 04 = 17 / 0.61 / 0.47 / 1.08
Riquelme---/ 22 + 09 = 31 / 11 + 02 = 13 / 04 + 01 = 05 / 0.42 / 0.16 / 0.58
Zidane-----/ 25 + 04 = 29 / 06 + 00 = 06 / 10 + 00 = 10 / 0.21 / 0.35 / 0.56
Ballack----/ 23 + 06 = 29 / 13 + 01 = 14 / 00 + 00 = 00 / 0.48 / 0.00 / 0.48
Lampard----/ 33 + 08 = 41 / 16 + 02 = 18 / 09 + 01 = 10 / 0.44 / 0.24 / 0.68
Kaka-------/ 30 + 11 = 41 / 12 + 05 = 17 / 00 + 01 = 01 / 0.41 / 0.02 / 0.43
Alex-------/ 27 + 04 = 31 / 13 + 03 = 16 / 23 + 02 = 25 / 0.52 / 0.80 / 1.32
Henry------/ 28 + 09 = 37 / 22 + 05 = 27 / 03 + 01 = 04 / 0.73 / 0.11 / 0.84
Shevchenko-/ 24 + 11 = 35 / 19 + 09 = 28 / 00 + 03 = 03 / 0.80 / 0.09 / 0.89
Ronaldo----/ 23 + 02 = 25 / 14 + 00 = 14 / 02 + 00 = 02 / 0.56 / 0.08 / 0.64
Adriano----/ 29 + 11 = 40 / 13 + 05 = 18 / 00 + 01 = 01 / 0.45 / 0.03 / 0.48
Rooney-----/ 35 + 05 = 40 / 16 + 01 = 17 / 10 + 00 = 10 / 0.43 / 0.25 / 0.68
Eto’o------/ 30 + 09 = 39 / 24 + 05 = 29 / 05 + 04 = 09 / 0.74 / 0.23 / 0.97
Juninho----/ 30 + 08 = 38 / 07 + 04 = 11 / 00 + 03 = 03 / 0.29 / 0.08[FONT=&quot] / 0.37
[/FONT] V.Nilsteroy/ 33 + 08 = 41 / 21 + 02 = 23 / 03 + 00 = 03 / 0.56 / 0.07 / 0.63
Beckham ---/ 26 + 07 = 33 / 01 + 01 = 02 / 08 + 03 = 11 / 0.06 / 0.33 / 0.39
Drogba-----/ 28 + 07 = 35 / 12 + 01 = 13 / 10 + 00 = 10 / 0.37 / 0.29 / 0.66
Crespo-----/ 28 + 05 = 36 / 10 + 02 = 12 / 02 + 01 = 03 / 0.33 / 0.08 / 0.41
Messi------/ 15 + 06 = 21 / 07 + 01 = 08 / 01 + 01 = 02 / 0.38 / 0.10 / 0.48

[FONT=&quot] The "offensive index" is merely the sum of a player's average goals per game and the average assists per game. Now, I realize that numbers don't tell the whole story and perhaps not all the leagues (and decisive games) should be weighted the same to determine who is best, additionally things such as key passes that are "less" than assists aren't taken into account, but this applies fairly equally across the board. What they numbers do is give us an objective basis for comparison, and in that sense, they do not lie. Looking at this table, you have to realize why I am making all this fuss about Alex. And surely you must also realise the necessity of him as a titular. Now rememeber... this is just this year... Alex has averaged 0.53 goals and 0.56 assists per game, over the last 220 games / 3 years.

If one ranks by offensive index, a good measure of how dangerous offensively a player has been this season, this is what you get:

1. Alex
2. Ronaldinho
3. Eto'o
4. Shevchenko
5. Henry
6. Lampard (tie)
6. Rooney (tie)
8. Drogba
9. Ronaldo
10. Van Nilstelroy.
11. Riquelme
12. Zidane
13. Ballack (tie)
13. Adriano (tie)
13. Messi (tie)
16. Kaka
17. Crespo
18. Beckham
19. Juninho

I don't presume to think this determines who is the best in the world, but it is an extremely interesting statistic nonetheless.

He really is Alexsandro the great. =)

If I missed anyone it was for time constraints... if you think they should be included, give me their name and I will try to get them in. Likewise, if you see any errors with the stats, also let me know and I will fix them, I want them to be accurate as this will probably be featured prominently on alexnacopa.com.

I am dubious about the accuracy of the Italy and Germany assist stats. They seem a bit low... if anyone knows where I can find these numbers, let me know so I can cross check. The England, CL, Turkey, and Spain stats are fine.
[/FONT]

 

I noticed a significant flaw in the numbers. As I said previously, the assist stats for Italy and Germany (and upon further examination, France) looked dubious. They were worse than that... they were nonexistent. I couldn't find a single Italian league player with assists. They obviously aren't tracking this stat in Serie A (at least not on any site I found), thus, for a more accurate comparison, I decided to only consider assists and games from the champions league when calculating the average for the players in question. I placed an asterisk * to denote where I did this.

Also, Alex scored again today so his goal total has been updated. He played a decisive role in Fener's 4-0 victory over their biggest rivals Galatasaray. He participated in two of the goals, and would have two more assists if Fener's strikers hadn't missed sitters. The game was crucial because Fener was 3 points behind Gala with 4 games to go. Fener now depends only on it's own strengths to win the Turkish Superleague this year for the third consecutive time. O Alex esta jogando muita bola. =)

Here are the new numbers sorted by offensive index (with a few new players):

Name-------/-GP--(L + CL)-/----Goals-----/--Assists-----/-GPG- /-APG- /-Offensive Index
Alex-------/ 28 + 04 = 32 / 14 + 03 = 17 / 23 + 02 = 25 / 0.53 / 0.78 / 1.31
Ronaldinho-/ 26 + 10 = 36 / 15 + 07 = 22 / 13 + 04 = 17 / 0.61 / 0.47 / 1.08
Shevchenko-/ 24 + 11 = 35 / 19 + 09 = 28 / 00*+ 03 = 03 / 0.80 / 0.28*/ 1.08
Eto’o------/ 30 + 09 = 39 / 24 + 05 = 29 / 05 + 04 = 09 / 0.74 / 0.23 / 0.97
Henry------/ 28 + 09 = 37 / 22 + 05 = 27 / 03 + 01 = 04 / 0.73 / 0.11 / 0.84
Toni-------/ 34 + 00 = 34 / 28 + 00 = 28 / 00*+ 00 = 00 / 0.82 / 0.00*/ 0.82
Trezeguet--/ 28 + 00 = 28 / 20 + 00 = 20 / 00*+ 00 = 00 / 0.71 / 0.00*/ 0.71
Lampard----/ 33 + 08 = 41 / 16 + 02 = 18 / 09 + 01 = 10 / 0.44 / 0.24 / 0.68
Rooney-----/ 35 + 05 = 40 / 16 + 01 = 17 / 10 + 00 = 10 / 0.43 / 0.25 / 0.68
Juninho----/ 30 + 08 = 38 / 07 + 04 = 11 / 00*+ 03 = 03 / 0.29 / 0.38*/ 0.67
Drogba-----/ 28 + 07 = 35 / 12 + 01 = 13 / 10 + 00 = 10 / 0.37 / 0.29 / 0.66
Ronaldo----/ 23 + 02 = 25 / 14 + 00 = 14 / 02 + 00 = 02 / 0.56 / 0.08 / 0.64
V.Nilsteroy/ 33 + 08 = 41 / 21 + 02 = 23 / 03 + 00 = 03 / 0.56 / 0.07 / 0.63
Riquelme---/ 22 + 09 = 31 / 11 + 02 = 13 / 04 + 01 = 05 / 0.42 / 0.16 / 0.58
Zidane-----/ 25 + 04 = 29 / 06 + 00 = 06 / 10 + 00 = 10 / 0.21 / 0.35 / 0.56
Adriano----/ 29 + 11 = 40 / 13 + 05 = 18 / 00*+ 01 = 01 / 0.45 / 0.09*/ 0.54
Kaka-------/ 30 + 11 = 41 / 12 + 05 = 17 / 00*+ 01 = 01 / 0.41 / 0.09*/ 0.50
Ballack----/ 23 + 06 = 29 / 13 + 01 = 14 / 00*+ 00 = 00 / 0.48 / 0.00*/ 0.48
Messi------/ 15 + 06 = 21 / 07 + 01 = 08 / 01 + 01 = 02 / 0.38 / 0.10 / 0.48
Crespo-----/ 28 + 05 = 36 / 10 + 02 = 12 / 02 + 01 = 03 / 0.33 / 0.08 / 0.41
Beckham ---/ 26 + 07 = 33 / 01 + 01 = 02 / 08 + 03 = 11 / 0.06 / 0.33 / 0.39

 

I wonder what Ronaldinho or Kaká's numbers would be if they played in the Turkish Superliga.

 

Surely higher (as I mentioned, I did not implement any weighting factors), but by how much? Some of the things that Alex does require skill so fantastic that they would be successful no matter where he plays. Turkish football can be pretty defensive (and violent). Alex's would probably lower in Italy but I am not so sure about Spain. What most impresses me is that he has sustained this record of more than .5 goals and .5 assists over more than 200 games.

If you do an apples to apples comparison of their champion's league records (same competition):

Alex: 4 games, 3 goals, 2 assists. .75 GPG / .5 APG = 1.25 OI
Ronaldinho: 10 games, 7 goals, 4 assists. .7 GPG / .4 APG = 1.1 OI
Kaka: 11 games, 5 goals, 1 assist. .45 GPG / .09 APG = .54 OI

You will see that their OIs are remarkably close to their season averages of 1.31, 1.08, and .50 respectively. Again, stats don't tell the whole story, but they do give us an objective basis for comparison.

 

Here are some hilights from today's game:

Alex play & low cross that led to Fener's second goal.

Alex's goal (3rd)

 

Don't know if anybody posted this but I'll post it anyway:

Alex still hopes to be remember for the World Cup
http://globoesporte.globo.com/ESP/Noticia/0,,AA1182500-4482,00.html

 

Have you checked out any of the Alex compilations that have been posted here (just wondering)?

 

I sent a PM with the same link I gave you.

Thanks for this.

 

Nice website Redshift!!

I still remember an incredible goal that he scored against Argentina!!

Ão ão ão!! Alex é seleção!!!