The Blond Ambition Tour: The 2016-17 Season Thread

Neymar always delivers in big games and even at his worse he still contributes to the attack build up. Of course, our expectation from him is high and always will be compared to Messi and Suarez.

 

Jasper got hurt on vacation so big Copa question is MAtS or Masip? Also pique back early so should be available. Not clear if MSN will come back soon too given Bilbao being a tough draw. In terms of vacations and Copa we got lucky with playing the Thursday Jan 5th match. However, that sets up a string of games every 3 days (if we advance past Bilbao) for the entire month of January. On the road vs. Villarreal just the first of those, on Sunday Jan 8th.

 

UEFA team of the year: 4 Real, 3 Barca, 1 Atletico = 8 Liga, plus 2 Juventus, and 1 Bayern. Not sure I agree with all the picks but why do they call it the "premiership" again?

Was a fan vote thing: http://www.sport-english.com/en/new...es-iniesta-and-gerard-pique-uefa-2016-5727468

 

Let's play 'hangman'.
You have one shot at it.


P R E M I E R S H I _

 

He takes alot of crap from us but this is a pretty solid first 150 games and includes 8 titles won (and 3 still in play in this 3rd season) all in 2.5 seasons:

 

Great story of Suarez's first club in Europe: https://www.theguardian.com/footbal...uis-suarez-groningen-ajax-barcelona-liverpool

 

With these players it could have been even more so imo.

 

It could have been more, it could have been less. And we are all entitled to our opinions.

The most remarkable thing to me was how he ultimately integrated all the new players signed in the summer of 2014 (before our transfer ban which kept us from registering a new player till January 2016), two new GKs, two new CBs, new mid., and new striker, basically 3 starters and 3 important subs (or 2 since Verm was always injured). So a new coach inherits a team with new players, some of whom he had no say in signing, and this team has basically struggled under 3 coaches since Pep left (Tito, Tito's assistant Barney Rubble, and Tata), now it is integrating new players and new egos and he ultimately wins a treble. But that treble only followed the endless lineup changes, the slow integration of Suarez post suspension and under a microscope, the fall out after Anoeta, Zubi's firing (and Puyol's departure), etc. To manage all that and win a treble, then with no new signings (while Xavi and Pedro left), and a slow integration of Turan and Vidal last January, still repeat a domestic double also a strong accomplishment.

I mean it is easy to say "just roll out MSN and 302 goals in 151 games plus 8 titles and counting will follow", but if it were that easy why did it not work for Rikjaard when he added Henry to Messi, Eto'o, and Ronaldinho? Or when Pep added any of Zlatan, Villa, Sanchez, or Cesc to teams that already included Messi, Xavi, Iniesta, Busquets, Pique, Alves, and Pedro all in their absolute prime? Or why is it not always happening for our rich galactico friends who roll out Ronaldo, Bale, and Benzema along with players like Morata, Isco, James, Modric, and Kroos (and previously Higuain, Ozil, di Maria, to name just a few recent big names)?

 

You wanna keep talking about 2014 or about 2017? Big difference if you get my point. Also there no fair comparison for the coaches since age, players, and time changes. Give them same team same form same age and the we can compare.. which is something that never will happen so it's pointless to discuss. Matter of fact is that Lucho is and will always be an average coach..people justify lots just cause he's a old Barca legend and gets to coach Barca with the most amazing players that people give him cred. He showed signs of greatness first season with changing things around but now it's back to same old same old. Lucky Messi kicks bails out the team... I'm sure free kick in that position was something that Lucho didn't plan for before hand to save him. He's given up and not adapting, he's letting critics get to him by choking. No wonder Rakitic says if he's here then I'm gone.. either Rakitic is a jerk or vice versa. He dropped the ball badly with his tactics, signings and line ups. Lucho out period!

 

Well I am not just talking about 2014 but about what he has done in his 2.5 years here. But reasonable people can differ in their opinions. We have no idea who would follow Lucho if Lucho decided not to continue or if the board decided to go in another direction. And it is not just tactics and lineups but training and the management of what could be some huge egos (though they remarkably seem pretty ego free that is a bit illusory I suspect). Time will tell. I am not without my frustrations too with lineups, signings, etc.

But came to post what I know about the CdR draw, tomorrow, no seeds for draw or for who plays first / second leg at home:

Draw 13 January 2017
8 → 4 Opponents seeding: Draw of lots.
Local team seeding: Luck of the draw.
Knock-out tournament type: Double match

First matches start 18 January 2017 with return legs one week later 25 January 2017.

PRE DRAW ODDS: Barca and Real both at 5:4 or 1.25:1 to win it all
Atletico 6:1
Celta 18:1
Real Sociedad 22:1
Eibar 54:1
Alaves 66:1
Alcorcon 250:1

http://www.oddschecker.com/football/spain/copa-del-rey/winner

 

More info on tomorrow's draw, sorry it's been slow coming despite by searching: http://www.sport-english.com/en/new...final-draw-when-which-teams-are-still-5740313

12 PM CET draw means 6 AM on east coast of USA, and 3 AM west coast, so yeah, I'll just wake up at my usual 6 a.m. PST to find we play Atletico while Real Madrid draws Alcorcon

 

Well, Barca got Real Sociedad. First leg in San Sebastian on Thursday.

The two lowest-ranked teams drew each other instead of Madrid surprisingly. Alcorcon v Alaves.

 

And Real Madrid v Celta Vigo
Atletico v Eibar
Hope we can win in Anoeta for first time since 2007. At least 2nd leg is at home.

 

So Sociedad travel to Camp Nou and the Bernabeu within a 3-day span. Ouch!

 

So I posted these yesterday:
PRE DRAW ODDS:
Barca and Real both at 5:4 or 1.25:1 to win it all -- POST DRAW UPDATE BOTH 7/5 OR 1.4:1
Atletico 6:1 -- SAME
Celta 18:1 -- NOW 33 AFTER DRAWING REAL MADRID
Real Sociedad 22:1 -- NOW 33 AFTER DRAWING BARCA
Eibar 54:1 -- NOW 100 AFTER DRAWING ATLETICO
Alaves 66:1 -- STILL 66 BUT MANY SHORTER ODDS TOO (33, 35, 40, 50) AFTER DRAWING ALCORCON
Alcorcon 250:1 -- STILL 250 DESPITE DRAWING ALAVES THOUGH MANY SHORTER ODDS TOO (100, 125, 150)

http://www.oddschecker.com/football/spain/copa-del-rey/winner

 

Eibar 100:1 is pretty amazing/tempting odds for a quarterfinalist who potentially need only one upset to reach the final (since either Alaves or Alcorcon will be in the semifinal draw). If a computer replayed the current scenerio 100 times they would win more than once, I suspect.

 

Good point, but only the final is a single game (where I think upsets are more likely), which makes the Copa take longer and favors the better teams. Just looking at their chance to advance past Atletico in the two legged quarterfinal the only bookie with odds on oddschecker has them at 4.5:1 (9/2) but there's a big "spread" as Atletico is 1/7, so the "truth is somewhere in between 1 in 7 and 1 in 4.5. For easy math let's say 1 in 6 is the "true" chance of beating Atletico (which seems generous). Then let's say 1 in 3 chance of drawing the Alcorcon v. Alaves winner. So were up to 1 in 18, then beating them too, but let's give Eibar some credit and (1) that they do that more often than not, and that (2) even if they draw a Barca, Real M, Real S, or Celta they still have a shot at winning so if they beat Atletico (1 in 6) that they have a 1 in 3 chance of getting to final. So now in 1 of 18 they are in final, sure they are underdog, but it is a single game, are they really a 1 in 6 chance of winning or worse? Probably not. So I agree with your analysis. 1 in 100 is generous. Find a bookie. Maybe lay a little on Atletico to advance to hedge your bet (seriously 1/7 is pretty nice there).

 

No La Real thread for tomorrow's game so I will post this here for now:
Rafinha injured in training and cannot play, MAtS, Mathieu, and Vidal all rested/rotated. Bit of a shame to see Vidal back there again, and Mathieu also struggling to get any PT but we can only bring 18.

Full Barca squad against Real Sociedad: Cillessen, Masip, Piqué, Rakitic, Busquets, Denis Suárez, Arda, Iniesta, Suárez, Messi, Neymar, Mascherano, Paco Alcácer, Jordi Alba, Digne, S. Roberto, André Gomes and Umtiti

Luis Enrique: "Snubbing Aleix out of matchday vs La Real? I can only call up 18 players and some have to stay..." "I'm thinking the same (as I said the other day) about Aleix & the rest. Job of a coach's to take decisions & thats what I do""In San Sebastian I've been through everything, but I prefer not to comment on the past and focus on the football element, but what's clear is that the day we win at San Sebastian is getting closer. Maybe 20 years will go by, but it's getting closer that's for sure."

 

Damn! The semifinal could be a matchup between a 33:1 longshot and a 66:1 longshot!

That said, since Atletico is out of the title race it feels like maybe this is their year in the Copa.

 

Squad list already out for tomorrow's match v. Eibar:
Masch - suspended
Iniesta and Rafinha - injured
Masip - 3rd keeper to stands

So all other first teamers make the squad including Vidal and Mathieu.

@Viscaelbarca if you are still jammed up I will try to start a thread, just let me know.

 

Sport rates the entire team's performances for the first half of the season, some pretty extreme views (3 10s for instance): http://www.sport-english.com/en/new...ratings-the-half-way-point-the-season-5761057

 

Jee absurd ratings!! They just base that on what? Eibar game?

Here is mine:
Ter Stegen 7.5
Jasper Cillessen 7
Sergi Roberto 6
Aleix Vidal 7
Gerard Pique 9
Samuel Umtiti 9
Javier Mascherano 7
Jeremy Mathieu 5
Jordi Alba 7
Lucas Digne 6.5
Sergio Busquets 7
Ivan Rakitic 7
Denis Suarez 8
Andres Iniesta 8.5
Arda Turan 8
Rafinha 7
Andre Gomes 5.5
Neymar 7.5
Luis Suarez 9
Leo Messi 10
Paco Alcacer 5

Average 7,3 which reflects the 3rd place in the league.

 

They do seem a bit high, although I agree with most of them on a relative basis. But yeah... they make it too easy to get a perfect '10' which means there is no way to separate the very good (Umtiti) from the brilliant (Messi). There isn't even that much separating Messi from Paco. lol The whole point of having a scale from 0 to 10 is to use the full range.

 

I also think that there is a tendency, especially with the new signings, to judge them and rate them based on value -- what the club paid for the player. Which is unfair to Paco as he rarely gets to play and forwards generally command higher fees yet we all knew coming in that he'd get limited minutes (which is why so many forwards resisted Barca's offers to join this summer). We also paid a ton for Gomes and the Sport author admits to judging him more harshly given what we paid. Meanwhile Umtiti and Digne cost barely more that just Paco or just Gomes, so easier to rate them higher, same with Denis even more so - cheapest of all to bring back but we do pay an extra million every 10 games he plays for the first 90 or so games.

That said Gomes and Paco do have more to prove of the 5 - based on play to date, and Jasper, the 6th, has such a small sample size but would probably be judged more harshly if Bravo was doing better (MAtS too).