Euro 2012 Draft Match 12: ColeTrain vs LuckyLloyd

G.K.

This match is ColeTrain vs LuckyLloyd. The match will last for 48 hours, in which time the participants will need to outline their team, basic strategy, and strategy against their opponent.

Also, the voting will take place during this 48 hour period. There will be a poll but only votes with answers developed in a post will be taken into consideration. This development doesn't have to be paragraphs long, even a single sentance is fine. But don't vote until the competitors have had a chance to outline their teams.

Guys, whenever you are ready, begin.

ColeTrain

Defense For this game I've opted for a back three of Desailly, Pique and Albiol rather than a flat four. I feel this suits LL's team better.
Desailly needs little introduction. One of the best defenders produced in the last couple of decades.
Raul Albiol is a solid defender who is used to dealing with players of LL's team's class, like wise with Pique, who also brings excellent distribution to start an attack from deep.

Midfield.
I've gone for what is in effect a 6 man midfield. However, they all have very different roles to play.
First off Bouma's sole task is to man mark a certain player.
Van Bommel will offer the much needed protection to my three centre halves. He will sit in front of them when not on the ball and when in possession will look to move it on quickly. A role which he has done effectively for years.
Marchisio will play a box to box role. He will defend with Van Bommell in the centre without the ball and look to burst forward to support Rooney and Podolski.
Aiden McGeady will be playing the role in which we have seen play for Ireland. He will play as a right midfielder who will defend deep without the ball but will look to attack quickly when on the break. With good solid players around him he can prosper.
Luckas Podolski is playing attacking midfield without a free role. He will stay in the centre and look to support Rooney closely.
Shaqiri is an all out attacking midfielder. He will drift into both flanks and will be there to counter attack. His pace and trickery should cause plenty of problems.

Attack.
Rooney is the out and out striker. He will be the focal point in every attack. Although he will be on his own he won't be short on support. Shaqiri, Podolski, McGeady and Marchisio will be up there. There is plenty of versatility in my attack. There is technique, power and pace.

Lucky Lloyd's team
LL's team is blessed with quality attacking players.
First off there is the Ronaldo factor.
He is a huge threat to my backline. To counteract him I've set Bouma to man mark. However, the man who will be tasked in stopping him will really be Desailly. Marcel's role is critical. His job will be to to stand up against him. Although Wilfred Bouma will be man marking, I don't think any player in the world can effectively mark a player of Ronaldo's class out of the game. So Desailly will be the tasked with dealing with him if he gets too close to the box. If there's any player that could do it then it might have been him. Rock solid with the heart of a lion. I think he would have had the class and temperament to stifle him.
On the other side of the pitch you have Gareth Bale. A very effective player when on his game. Behind him you have Ashley Cole. Aiden McGeady will drop back to help out both Van Bommell and Pique when they come forward. Hagi is another player who offers a big threat. Marchisio will come back to keep an eye on him.
I feel despite having class, Shevchenko has naturally declined as a player. I feel my back three could handle him while remaining focused on the threat of LL's attacking midfielders.

Summary

I feel my attack would get the better of LL's defense. Podolski and Rooney would be a lot for them to handle, then you have the threat of Shaqiri roaming and stretching them. McGeady will also cause Ashley Cole plenty of problems when running at him. I don't see enough protection in his team. There are some quality players there but the defense would be badly exposed against my attack on the counter. Rosicky is a luxury player and is not up to tracking runs from Marchisio and Podolski plus to expect Khedira to do deal with Shaqiri and them two on his own is wishful thinking.

The attacking players in my team would have the opportunity to run at them all game and imo his midfield would be simply outplayed and over ran. I think his attack is very good but he has traded that for a weak enough midfield. My midfield is more balanced, would outnumber him vastly and would be well able to keep the ball for long periods comfortably.

Rooney would cause problems and would take up Agger's full attention. Without him I don't see anything special in that defense and there would be goals for my side. My team is not without it's weaknesses but I feel my defense has better players than his defense, if they put in a solid performance - which they would be capable of, then my midfield dominates and my attack does too much damage to his defense.

LuckyLloyd

Best of luck to ColeTrain, should be fun as always. First, I'll repost the general introduction to my team:

Team:

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Valdes

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Arbeloa--Barzagli--Agger--Cole

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Khedira

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Rosicky

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Ronaldo

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Hagi

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Bale

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Shevchenko

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General:

The big thing here is obviously the attacking midfield trio of Ronaldo, Bale and Hagi. Simply put, these three on the pitch within this 11 will cause multiple problems for any opposition.

Hagi in his prime was an exquisite player with unparalleled vision. He will provide a fulcrum to unlock the heart of any defense in this competition. He will find space for himself or create it for others, and Ronaldo and Bale are capable of coming of their wings to get on the end of moves through the center. In this sense, while Rosicky and Shevchenko aren't the best players picked in the process, they will fit perfectly here. Shevchenko provides excellent movement and positioning off the ball and is still capable of linking play to runners beyond him, while Rosicky is a great passer with great technique and has the ability to pop up on the end of passing moves through the center of a defense.

But, if that isn't working, then Bale and Ronaldo have the pace and physicality to stretch a defense out wide, beat fullbacks and create havoc from a different angle. Also Ronaldo is a potent threat in the air if left one on one with a fullback on the back post. At times where teams get men behind the ball against us, any of our players will have the ability to deliver a threatening ball from an angle to take advantage of that.

Ultimately, I see a lot of goals in this lineup. The variety on show here should stretch any team, as there are plenty of available playing patterns that can hurt.

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Defensively, I feel like I have an excellent goalkeeper, a really well balanced and gifted back four, and a top notch defensive shield sitting infront of them. Agger and Barzagli is a complimentary partenership, and Cole and Arbeloa on either side (Cole particularly) will stand toe to toe with any attacking wingers in this draft. Khedira and Valdes infront and behind are players of the highest pedigree and have spent the last few seasons operating at the business end of the footballing spectrum.

A big problem for my opponents will be the threat I pose on the break. Bale and Ronaldo are luxuries in this regard. They have the pace and ability to stretch a pushed up back line in a split second, and Hagi was supreme in his ability to pick the decisive pass in an instant.

LuckyLloyd

ColeTrain wrote: »

First off there is the Ronaldo factor.
He is a huge threat to my backline. To counteract him I've set Bouma to man mark. However, the man who will be tasked in stopping him will really be Desailly. Marcel's role is critical. His job will be to to stand up against him. Although Wilfred Bouma will be man marking, I don't think any player in the world can effectively mark a player of Ronaldo's class out of the game. So Desailly will be the tasked with dealing with him if he gets too close to the box. If there's any player that could do it then it might have been him. Rock solid with the heart of a lion. I think he would have had the class and temperament to stifle him.

Bouma was identified as a weakness at left back when he was picked, and being up against Ronaldo / Bale is a disaster of sorts for Cole I think. Bouma just isn't mobile enough anymore, and planning to have Desailly provide help defense seems ill formed. Desailly is brilliant, but if Ronaldo is attracting specific attention from two players (particularly when he can move all over the pitch and pop up on either wing, etc) then it is going to open up a lot of room to operate for Bale and Hagi.

ColeTrain wrote: »

On the other side of the pitch you have Gareth Bale. A very effective player when on his game. Behind him you have Ashley Cole. Aiden McGeady will drop back to help out both Van Bommell and Pique when they come forward. Hagi is another player who offers a big threat. Marchisio will come back to keep an eye on him.

McGeady is an extremely honest player, and no doubt he would give that job his best effort. But while he retains defensive shape and tracks runners, he just doesn't have the technique or physicality to effectively defend the likes of Bale or Ronaldo. Plus, if he is being forced back to provide cover all the time, it suits me as he can't hurt me or provide an outlet for his teammates when he is being forced so deep all the time.

ColeTrain wrote: »

I feel despite having class, Shevchenko has naturally declined as a player. I feel my back three could handle him while remaining focused on the threat of LL's attacking midfielders.

This is obviously something I disagree on, and will ultimately be for the voters to adjudge.

Van Bommell gets judged on current form, and he is lacking in mobility and bite at this stage of his career. Bouma and McGeady, frankly, are not suited to the up and down wingback role Cole's formation will require to function efficiently. Situations where they find themselves one on one with Bale / Ronaldo will be very dangerous, and if the (admittedly excellent) three man central defensive unit is getting pulled wide constantly to help out it is going to create gaps and space for Hagi / Rosicky / Shevchenko to move into and exploit - all of whom have great football intelligence and off the ball movement.

I think Cole will be a little overwhelmed here and the balance, panache and depth of my attacking unit will be able to get goals.

ColeTrain wrote: »

I feel my attack would get the better of LL's defense. Podolski and Rooney would be a lot for them to handle, then you have the threat of Shaqiri roaming and stretching them. McGeady will also cause Ashley Cole plenty of problems when running at him. I don't see enough protection in his team. There are some quality players there but the defense would be badly exposed against my attack on the counter.

I'd also disagree here. As noted, Bouma and McGeady are going to struggle to contribute as effectively up the pitch as Cole might like given the defensive duties forced upon them by the Bale / Ronaldo / Hagi axis. Their inability to provide support makes the task of:

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Valdes

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Arbeloa

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Barzagli--Agger

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Cole

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Khedira

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more straightforward. I'd ask people to look at the above unit again, as I'm very proud of and immensely confident in them. Rooney and Podolski are great players, but they're up against a truly World Class defensive lineup in this game. Shaqiri pops up around the place and is technically gifted, but at this early stage in his career his decision making is not all it could be. It's therefore hard to see who is going to take the bull by the horns for Cole.

Is Rooney going to come deep and look for the ball? Can Podolski take the responsibility to collect and create and provide the link?

That is ultimately for the voters to decide, but I would ask people to compare Cole's lineup to mine in terms of playmaking ability and clear links when transitioning the play from defence to attack.

ColeTrain wrote: »

Rosicky is a luxury player and is not up to tracking runs from Marchisio and Podolski plus to expect Khedira to do deal with Shaqiri and them two on his own is wishful thinking.

Rosicky is a luxury player, but the backline he sits in front of is extremely balanced and athletic. In the absence of potent support from deep, I'm struggling to see how they can be overloaded, and if Bouma and McGeady to start to enter the fray then losing possession would create an instant danger for Cole's defense.

ColeTrain wrote: »

The attacking players in my team would have the opportunity to run at them all game and imo his midfield would be simply outplayed and over ran. I think his attack is very good but he has traded that for a weak enough midfield. My midfield is more balanced, would outnumber him vastly and would be well able to keep the ball for long periods comfortably.

Having more possession is one thing, turning it into goals is another.

ColeTrain wrote: »

Rooney would cause problems and would take up Agger's full attention. Without him I don't see anything special in that defense and there would be goals for my side. My team is not without it's weaknesses but I feel my defense has better players than his defense, if they put in a solid performance - which they would be capable of, then my midfield dominates and my attack does too much damage to his defense.

Again, I'd have to disagree.

Fair play to Cole for a very strong submission and argument though. It will be interesting to see how it plays out...

witnessmenow

I think LLs left wing would tear shreds out of coles right side, who seems to be void of any defense prowess. McGeady versus Cole and Bale.... lamb to the slaughter! When Van B drifts to help out Hagi would have too much room. I just cant see a scenario where they wouldnt cause trouble.

I think coles decision to go with 3 at the back , with the wingers LL has is a mistake.

So LL for me

Rekop dog

LL for me here, Marcel would probably do a better job than most at containing Ronny, but think the left hand side is where the real miss match is here. Cole and Bale would get so much joy there over a course of a game. Don't think Van Bommels workrate is as high as it once was over 90 so he can't provide adaquet cover anymore(by his high standards of old). Piqué whose been poor this season may have a uncomfortable night. Only worry for Llyod here and getting greater in future games is how many games in a row Sheva can play over short period as his effectivness at his age decreases significantly without ~ weeks rest between games.

Actually how long are draft rounds meant to be apart? Is it 4 days like most Euro games? Could be important in decision process.

SomethingElse

A bit of a mismatch here. The quality of LuckyLloyd's team has exposed the weakness in ColeTrains's XI. Isolating Bouma from the defensive unit in order to man mark Ronaldo has left the right back area exposed. McGeady is left to patrol the right flank against the threat of Bale and Cole. Most likely this will pull Pique out of position as he attempts to cover the gap left by the absence of a right back. Desailly provides quality in centre, but with Arbeloa overlapping with Ronaldo, Albiol will be increasingly exposed. A Van Bommel in his prime may have been of effect here in combating the threat through the centre. Podolski for me is a strange choice in his central role. He lacks the vision and creativity needed for the role. I could see him becoming more of a frontman chasing balls into the corner rather than acting as a creative force. The solidity of LuckyLloyd's selection contrasts the tactical mayhem of their opponents. Depending on how well Hagi and Shevchenko 'click', this could be very one sided

Dublin_Gunner

LL to win.

CT looking to overpower midfield, but LL with avoid midfield getting ball out wide as soon as possible, allowing his wingers to exploit the defensive naivity of CT's team.

McGeady and Bouma are not great at tracking, and will be left ball wathing when they lose posession.

With Ronaldo / Hagi / Shev / Bale forming an attacking quartet going forward, CT's 3 central defenders will be caught short of pace and manpower.

Rooney will be left isolated, having to essentially deal with a back 4 himself. Ronaldo and Bale WILL get back to defensive positions when required, crowding out the wide positions, and with Khedira and Rosicky protecting the back four, and both well capable of getting fluid ball movement, with Hagi & Shev as the outlets. This will be an easy enough win IMO.

LL 3-0 CT

Rooney to get sent off :P

yomtea98

LL easily

Moneymaker

LLs attack has far too much class across the board for CT to deal with. Ronaldo will run rings around Bouma and pulling Desially out of position is going to leave Pique and Albiol very exposed. Shaqiri and McGeady won't have any major impact and Rooney will be left isolated and frustrated. 3-0 win for Lloyd.

Trippie

Coletrain has one of the wrosts shapes to a football team I have seen. it reminds me of the ineptitude of Rafa at Inter vs Spurs when instead of putting someone on to help mark Bale, he put a centre mid on gave Bale the entire length of the field to himself. We all know how that turned out and I expect another good showing from Bale here.

Lloyds team has some weaknesses just the two teams he has faced have not been equipped to exploit them. I think there are only two teams who could realitisically give him a run for his money. LL for me

NukaCola

Ronaldo,Hagi and Bale will cause too many problems for the opposition. LL would win by more than 2 goals

kryogen

LL to win this, simple answer, his team is superior, poses far to many problems for coletrains team, the midfield will be a disaster for coletrain in this match I feel and playing 3 at the back v Bale, Hagi Ronaldo and Sheva is suicidal.

Bouma is not mobile enough to cover either Bale or Ronaldo, Podolski is not a central midifelder and is a waste of space in there I feel, I think Rooney gets isolated also which as we know he does not respond well to

eagle eye

LL's right left side attack is going to reap rewards in this one against a very weak right side for Coletrain. This is a very one-sided affair imo.

G.K.

A 10-0 victory here for LuckyLloyd over ColeTrain.

Congrats Lloyd, and best of luck in the matches ahead.

Commiserations to ColeTrain.

LuckyLloyd

gg ColeTrain

ColeTrain

LuckyLloyd wrote: »

gg ColeTrain

Well played Lloyd. Much better team, no matter what I was spouting on about Best of luck in the rest of the draft.

Also just want to say well done to GK. The draft couldn't have been better organised, fair play man.