World Cup Draft Round 2: Xavi6 v redzerdrog

Mr.Nice Guy

This is a replacement for the last thread which did not have the necessary public poll.

Please leave discussion in this thread for the participants and use the WC Draft Discussion thread if you'd like to say something.

The following posts will be the original arguments from the previous thread copied here for convenience.

Mr.Nice Guy

redzerdrog

redzerdrog's opening statement



My Team:
Goalkeeper:
Minding the net for me is Denmarks Thomas Sørensen. He has a wealth of experience both at club and international level with 90 Caps for Denmark since coming into the the Danish side he had big boots to fill and he didnt let anyone down. At 6ft 5in he is a massive presance about him and is an all round solid player.

Defence:
My 2 Centre Backs are Germanys Per Mertesacker and Argentinas Martin Demichelis. This is close to a perfect partnership in Mertesacker I have a 25 year old that has played 69 times for germany. He is also 6ft 6in tall so to have a good footballing CB like Demichelis (6ft 1in) playing beside him I think they will make a great partnership at the heart of my defence.

My Fullbacks are Guy Demel and Geal Clichy. Both players are physically strong and very quick. They are Both very comfortable on the ball and also 2 very good defenders. Clichy has been arsenals regular LB for a number of years and he is only 24 and Demel is after having a great year playing RB for Hamburg.

Midfield
In centre Midfield are another 2 player I think would make a great partnership and compliment eachother very well. Schweinsteiger and Veron will both play as center Midfielders. Both players are comfortable with Both feet and they are both Great passers of the ball and should get plenty of assists between them. When defending both players will turn into DMs with Schweinsteiger in particular excelling in this role during the world cup. It will also be an advantage that either player can demand the ball and act as playmaker and dictate the pace of the game.

My Attacking Midfield trio of Kuyt, Platini and Ronaldinho I have everything a manager could Dream of. In Platini i have 1 of the best AM to have ever played the game this is the player that zidane always looked up too and rates him as France's Greatest ever footballer. Many of the French supporters will tell you the same and that isn't bad for a country that produced Zidane. Platini captained france the the europen championship and score 41 goals in 72 for his country. He is also a Freekick specialist.

Kuyt and Ronaldinho are both Big game players. Ronaldinho is after having a great season with Milan Scoring 15 goals and pitching in with 16 assists. Kuyt is in here as an amazing 8th round pick. He is now a World Cup Runner up having played a crucial role in holland getting there.

Centre Forward:
Fernando Torres when fit is the best centre in the world. Injuries dount count in this game and Torres was clearly not fit during this world cup and he still played a crucial part for spain in the earlier games with his clever running and flick ons he created a lot for others round him. He has everything in my opinion pace, power, heading, control and most of all finishing.

The 1st thing that stands out about my team is how well balanced the team is and the partnership throughout the team will make my team tick with so many players complimenting eachother. My team is also vastly experienced with plenty of club and international experience and well used to playing on the biggest stage.
We are solid defensively with plenty of help from midfield and that same midfield will be the platform to build attacks and with an the attacking quartet of torres, platini,rondaldinho and Kuyt getting supply from Schweinsteiger and veron I cant see scoring being a problem.

Captain: Platini
Vice Captain:Schweinsteiger
Penalties:Ronaldiho
Freekick:Schweinsteiger/Veron (outside shooting distance)
Freekicks: Platini/Ronaldinho
Corners:veron/Schweinsteiger

Mr.Nice Guy

redzerdrog

Xavi6's opening statement

The first thing I like about my side is that it is very balanced. No players being fit in for the sake of it and all being played in positions to maximise their strength. I think this is a solid, and obvious, platform on which to build.

Goalkeeper - I chose Given in one of the special rounds as a player not at this World Cup. There is no doubting his consistency, and imo he is a lot better than the majority of the keepers in action in South Africa, hence him being good value for me. His shot stopping is outstanding, though people will question other aspects of his game.

Defence - Is there a better centre half combination in this? Maybe, but they would need to be pretty special to beat Lucio and Maldini. The former is the current Brazil captain and just won a domestic treble, while the latter is simply the best defender I have had the pleasure of seen playing. At full back we have Vidal who was part of the extremely impressive Chile side, and Nadir Belhadj. The Algerian has every attribute required of a full back. He is quick, gets forward well, can tackle, has good positional sense, and has a sweet left foot. I don't think we will concede too easy.

Midfield - It's all about balance in a midfield three and I feel I have covered all the bases. Diego Perez was a relative unknown prior to the World Cup but he was outstanding for Uruguay with his no nonsense attitude and tough tackling. The perfect player to sit in front of the defence. Slightly further ahead of him is our box to box midfielder Michael Bradley. Again he was in excellent form this summer with driving runs from midfield. At 6ft 2ins he has good stature about him and is also very comfortable on the ball. The final piece of the puzzle is Frank Lampard, the Chelsea star who knows where the net is. He will drive forward to support the lone striker and is pretty much a guaranteed goal getter.

Forwards - Stephen Pienaar was an absolute bargain signing for Everton and is now their highest paid player. His quick fit and great skill will sit nicely out right, and he wil be complimented by Angel Di Maria on the left. The Argentine has just signed for Real Madrid following some stunning displays for Benfica. Last but not least we have the man who brought Inter the Champions League trophy - Diego Milito. Criminally underused by Maradona, he is perfect for the one up top formation give his power, strength and ability to hold up the ball. He's also a lethal finisher.

Tactics - All of my side are comfortable on the ball so we will knock it around from the back. The left side will be the focus of a lot of our attacks given Belhadj's ability going forward, with Perez sitting deep to cover. Milito will of course hold the ball up no problem and bring Lampard into play. This should lead to goals.

Mr.Nice Guy

redzerdrog

redzerdrog's response:

Ok first things first I think the above statement could be made for my own side aswell as all my side are pleying in their regular positions. Same with xavi's side with the exception of pienaar on the right. IMO pienaar is far better off on the left and he plays prob about 80% of his football on the left.

I like the look and shape of xavi's team but I feel that my team is better balanced and has better partnerships to compliment eachother. With the exception of central defence and goalkeeper I feel that my team is stronger around the pitch.

All in all I expect it be a tight enough encounter with me winning 2-1

edit: I forgot to mention that up front I should win this hands down as this is a draft on international form aswell. I have fernando torres who has 24 goals in 78 games for the current world and european champions versus a player who isnt a regular for his country and hase score 4 times in 22 games since making his debut 8 years ago. IMO milito was a poor pick so early in the game as he was picked in round 3.

Xavi6

redzerdrog

Ok, even a half cut me can see massive holes in that defense. To be brutally honest, them centre halves are sh*te. We would have a field day, especially considering there is no DMC to pick up Lampard.

That team is perfect for Lamps to go up against and feeding off Milito's textbook forward play we will score.

We have Perez to combat Platini. They have no one.

Seriously, look at those two centre hves. That's where the game would be won and lost.

We would win 3-1

redzerdrog

Xavi6 wrote: »

Ok, even a half cut me can see massive holes in that defense. To be brutally honest, them centre halves are sh*te. We would have a field day, especially considering there is no DMC to pick up Lampard.

That team is perfect for Lamps to go up against and feeding off Milito's textbook forward play we will score.

We have Perez to combat Platini. They have no one.

Seriously, look at those two centre hves. That's where the game would be won and lost.

We would win 3-1

says it all really!! the one part of the pitch you are stronger if the part you target.
yes you have a better central defence but that is it. my centre halves are no way near as bad as you would like to think. I have the 1st choice german centre half that has 69 caps for one of the strongest countries in world football and he is still only 25 he is also a giant that will win anything in the air and to compliment him i have another central defender for one of the biggest countries in the world who is coming off a great season with bayern munich after being an integral part of them reaching the champions league final this year.

if you think for one second that perez a 30 year old average footballer that the 1st most people have heard of him is this world cup will combat platini is his prime your having a laugh.

and i will say it again milito is a terrible pick in this draft a forward that has scored 4 goals in 8 years for his country says it all. even heskey has a better record than that. For a round 3 pick that is shocking.

I also cant help but feel am getting a bit hard done by here as last time i looked i was winning the poll 11 - 4 now its 5-5 whos to say the people that voted yesterday will be online for the rest of the weekend.