Aldo VS Marty1968 - All time 3 year peak - AUCTION DRAFT

[Annahnomoss]

TEAM ALDO
Back Five
In goal is the legendary German keeper Sepp Maier, the mainstay in goal for Bayern and Germany throughout their golden period in the 70s, well defended by the CB duo of Paul McGrath and Alessandro Nesta. The Irish and Italian compliment each other well, with Nesta being the class and McGrath being the Colossus. Nesta's defensive nous and reading of play, anticipation, pace and athleticism and immaculate tackling and blocking along with his composure that made defending look like an art, will go perfectly with McGrath's no nonsense aggressive style of defending. Flanking them are Claudio Gentile and Giacinto Facchetti - Gentile will assume his defensive full-back duties which he performed to world class levels shutting down some quality opponents in the process, which Facchetti will showcase why he was one of the pioneers of the attacking fullback position, flying up and down the left flank with tremendous strength, stamina and pace, undisputed defensive ability and one who relishes the big games like few others. He'll be providing a fair share of the team's width down the left, and it is fair to say, not many wingers can claim to have his beating.

All in all, the defensive line boasts of some unrivalled quality with 3/4 being brought up with the Italian discipline as the fundamental. The unit will remain tight, compact and put everything on the line to protect the goal, it will be a mountain to climb to break them down.

Midfield
Sitting in front of the back five are the classic duo of the ruthless Luis Monti and the 'peerless' Jozsef Bozsik. Monti proved himself as arguably the best defensive midfielder of his generation, and also a tremendous man marker, usually tasked with taking out the most dangerous threat of the opposition, and his WC winning heroics are well known. He'll be doing the dirty work and allow the metronome Hungarian to pull the strings and run the show. Arguably the greatest deep lying playmaker the game has seen, a pivotal figure throughout the dominance of his club and country, Bozsik will have the freedom to pick out runs all over the pitch with ease. Joining him as the third is the Brazilian legend Socrates. One of the most creative playmakers ever, Socrates dazzled audiences in the yellow shirt in the 1982 World Cup and was a huge part of the beautiful style of play that team displayed. His one touch passing, movement and final ball added with his underrated goal scoring ability would round up the midfield unit nicely.

Attack
Starting off is the second Hungarian in the team, the man voted Barcelona's greatest player of the 20th century, László Kubala. One of the biggest figures in the history of the club, and also one of the greatest players of his generation, Kubala entertained crowds like few others. In this setup in particular, he will be bringing his insane dribbling and pace combined with a rocket of a shot, and one of the deadliest set piece takers ever. A versatile attacking player, he will be working on the right flank, making constant runs and also exchanging creative duties if needed.

And finally...

Possibly the greatest front two in the history of the game - the greatest number 9 and the greatest number 10! Luis Ronaldo and Pelé complete the team. The Brazilian duo make an insanely unstoppable front two, capable of practically everything. Physically, two beasts, absolute powerhouses. Both lightning quick with the ball. I won't go into how many goals they have scored, but it is a lot! One has three World Cups to his name, other a WC and a golden ball, and who was till very recently the all time top scorer in the WC. Big game giants, and would absolutely annihilate most defenses. In this setup, Ronaldo will be assuming his juggernaut role up front that he had in late 90s, while Pelé takes up the role of the talisman, which he played in the WC 1970 - and where he made everything in the greatest team to have played the game, tick. A true genius, and like anto aptly put, the best man to have in a team full of stars and make them shine. The man you need to let everyone play their natural game and still emerge as the leader and the superstar. The man who enables his team to play a brand of football as high as any connoisseur of the game can appreciate. There'll be no stopping them!

Against Marty :

- On first glance - Marty has a nice collection of some fine wingers in Ribéry, Giggs and Figo. Whichever of the two start - and I believe it would be Giggs and Figo - should find a tough time getting past Gentile and Facchetti.

- The duo of Nesta and McGrath with ample help from Monti should be able to deal with his set of forwards.

- His midfield of Ballack and Deschamps is a well balanced one, but against the quality of Pelé and Socrates creating chances and Bozsik running the show from behind, it would be a tough ask for them to contain that.

- I don't see how Iniesta fits anywhere in his team. It is not just that the team is not playing anything near tiki taka but the wavelength just doesn't match at any level. I love Andres, but if he starts, he wouldn't have the level of impact he's known for.

- Socrates was a wonderful deputy to Zico, he loves that role and is the first one to acknowledge a superior n10 in the team, given he was an amazing one himself. He'll work beautifully with Pelé in a similar role, sharing the attacking midfield duties at most times and with the attention going to Pelé most of the time, he is one player I believe will shine a lot here.

- There is no way to stop Ronaldo Fenomeno. Defend deep, high, compact, man mark, whatever. He's going to punish you, and this is him at his absolute peak. Passarella and Cannavaro are two great defenders, but Ronaldo has already made a muck out of Cannavaro and it is on record, so I will find a way there to score for sure.

- This is an old discussion but both Passarella and Carlos love going forward and is their natural game, those amount of gaps against the likes of Pelé, Ronaldo and Kubala wouldn't go unpunished.

Overall I think it will be a close game in terms of score, but I should be able to get a good control of the game throughout and with the free flowing brand of attacking football we intend to play with the three Samba legends at the helm of it, a win should come our way.

Three Year Peaks :
Sepp Maier : 1973-76. Three European Cups, Two League Titles, World Cup 74 Champion, Best Keeper at the World Cup, German Footballer of the Year in 75, Runner up in Euro 76.

Claudio Gentile : 1981-84. Two league titles, UEFA Cup and League Cup, World Cup 82 Champion, Team of the tournament.

Paul McGrath : 1991-94. League Cup, 2nd place in league with Aston Villa, PFA Player of the year 93, WC 94 heroics vs Italy (Baggio).

Alessandro Nesta : 2000-03. Serie A Defender of the year ALL 4 years. 2003 Champions League Winner.

Giacinto Facchetti : 1965-68. Serie A, European Cup, UEFA Euro Winner. 2nd place in Ballon D'or 65.

Luis Monti : 1931-34. Three Seria A titles, WC 1934 Winner.

Jozsef Bozsik : 1952-55. Second place in WC 1954 with Hungary, Olympic Title in 1952.

Socrates : 1981-84. SAM Footballer of the year 83, league win and key part of Brazil 82.

László Kubala : 1951-54 : Two league titles in Spain, three league cups, scoring best of 39 in 28.

Pelé : 1968-71. WC 1970 Champion and Golden Ball. Brazilian League winner and top scorer.

Luis Ronaldo : 1996-99. 47 in 49 for Barca. 1998 WC second place and Golden Ball.

-----------------------------------TEAM ALDO
-----------------------------------VERSUS
---------------------------------TEAM MARTY

Tactical change/Substitute made:

Spoiler

 

[Annahnomoss]

TEAM MARTY
So…given Aldo’s attacking line-up my team is going to be based on defending first and fast, direct counter-attacking football. The pace of Giggs and Figo on the wings and distribution of Deschamps and Iniesta, along with the killer instinct of my front two make this an ideal tactic. The workrate of Giggs and Figo plus four of the best defenders of all time will make even Ronaldo and Pele have to work extremely hard to make any space.


Dino Zoff is one of the best keepers the world has ever seen. Excellent positional sense, great shot-stopper and as agile as any other keeper. Voted Goalkeeper of the Century in 2000 so doesn’t get much better than that. Perfect defensive line to start.



Voted best Keeper in Europe in 1980 and 1981, plus keeper of the euro championships in 1980 and world cup in 1982. The best keeper in the draft!!

In front of him two of the greatest defenders of all time, both of different generations.

Daniel Passarella

Passarella was one of the most commanding sweepers/defenders in World Cup history. He was the perfect leader for any team, and became captain for both club and country at an early age.


Fabio Cannavaro

The only defender to win World Player of the Year since Beckenbauer in 1976. That puts him above any other defender during this time. His vision, passing, tackling and leadership was outstanding and during the peak of his career (2005, 2006, 2007) he won the league title three years in a row (twice with Juve and once at Real Madrid).

And let’s look at his honours in 2006 (which also included a World Cup winners medal)…

2006 AIC Oscar De Calcio Footballer Of The Year
2006 Italian Footballer Of The Year
2006 Italian Series A Footballer Of The Year
2006 UEFA Team Of The Year
2006 FIFA World Cup All-Star Team
2006 FIFA World Cup Silver Ball
2006 European Footballer Of The Year
2006 World Soccer Player Of The Year
2006 FIFA World Player Of The Year



His discipline and leadership is perfect for playing alongside Passarella.


Roberto Carlos – 2000-2002

Between 2000 and 2002 he was incredible for Real Madrid and Brazil, helping Real to the Champions League twice and world cup for Brazil in 2002. UEFA defender of the year in 2002 (and the following year) he was outstanding going forward but also excellent defending.


Javier Zanetti – (Mr consistent and could pick any three year period of his whole career but will go with 2005-2008)

NicknamedEl Tractor for his stamina and work rate, Zanetti was a quick, strong, and physically fit player in his prime, with outstanding physical attributes, excellent ball control, dribbling, technical ability, and acceleration. Defensively, he excelled at reading the game, and he was a good ball-winner and man-marker, although he was also effective at distributing the ball to team-mates, due to his passing range and vision.A two-way and two-footed player, he excelled at playing on either flank, where he was capable of advancing into more offensive positions to cross balls for team-mates.

His discipline behind Figo is perfect for my team.


Didier Deschamps – 1995-1998

Deschamps was one of the best ever at what he did….a pain in the neck for the opposition and breaking up play. Having won back possession his distribution was excellent and combined with his high work-rate, tenacity, stamina, and his efficacy at pressing and tackling opponents makes him a pivotal player in my team. He had an excellent positional and organisational sense, and was known for his tactical intelligence, versatility, and his leadership.

Named in WC98’s team of the tournament and French Player of the Year in 1998 (Ahead of Zidane, Desailly, Thuram, Vieira, Pires…)

Ballack (2001-2004)

Ballack was one of the greatest German midfielders of recent times, with outstanding vision, work rate and leadership. Twice voted in the world cup team (2002 and 2006) but arguably more effective in 2002. Between 2001 and 2004 at Leverkusen and then Bayern he was voted German player of the year twice and was a major attacking threat as well as solid rock to thwart opponents.


Luis Figo – 2000-2002

Figo’s pace, dribbling ability and passing make him perfect for my counter attacking style. He was without doubt one of the best wingers of his generation, and between 2000 and 2002 was almost unplayable. Winner of the balon d’Or in 2000 and world player of the year in 2001 his workrate, crossing and vision make him an excellent component for my two strikers.

One of my favourite players to watch growing up and could watch the clip below all day!




Ryan Giggs – 1999-2002

When you think of wingers, Giggs was the best of the best! Lightning pace, agility, great crosser and superb finisher. Again could pick most of his career at United but have gone for a three year period when he was a wonderful servant to Yorke, Cole and Ruud. A great player going forward and wonderful outlet to spring a counter attack; again making him ideal for my team and tactics against Aldo.

With Roberto Carlos overlapping him he also had the defensive awareness to cover his full-back and so my team would not be left short at the back.


Andres Iniesta – 2010-2012

One of the most comfortable footballers I’ve seen with the ball at his feet in the current generation. His awareness of all around him, strength on the ball, vision, distribution and creativity are outstanding and comparable to any that have played the game throughout history (Platini, Zidane, Zico, Hagi).

His work rate and tenacity are also something that during the Barca tiki-taka days might have gone unnoticed by some. An outstanding passer, great tackler and the creativity to work an opening for his strikers or score himself. Iniesta and Deschamps, plus Figo and Giggs’ work rate make this midfield four as competitive as any.

Second place in the balon d’Or in 2010, 4th in 2011 and 3rd in 2012 show what a wonderful player he is. Man of the match in three of Spain’s world cup games in 2010 and was player of the tournament at Euro 2012.


Raul 1999-2002

During this time Raul was incredible for Real. Just have a look at the clip below. His vision and predatory instinct in front of goal can be compared to any other striker in the draft. Just look at the goals he scored at 5:17, 6:07 and 6:36 on the clip….these goals are on a par with anything Pele, Maradona or Messi could do.



Voted the best striker in La Liga and the Champions League in 1999-2000, 2000-2001 and 2001-2002, and top scorer in Euro 2000 qualifying and in the team of the tournament he was a true great on the field.

Also second in the 2001 Balon d’Or and third in World Player of the Year.


Ruud van Nistelrooy – 2001-2004

Ruud is perfect for my team and was an outstanding predator in front of goal. Capable of working space for himself or just being in the right place at the right time his scoring record at United was excellent. 28 goals in 32 Champions League games during this three year period can only be bettered by C. Ronaldo and Messi in recent years.

His link up play with Giggs and Figo will provide any defence problems and his work rate from the front, alongside Raul will help to give my defence a rest against the onslaught of Ronaldo and Pele.

 

[Annahnomoss]

I am surprised you went for that peak Aldo. Ronaldo had a lot of injury problems in 1998-99 and in his 28 matches he just scored 15 goals, which makes it one of his worst seasons in goal output.

He also just scored 1 goal in 6 matches at the highest stage in the Champions League. His PSV season in 95-96 was also full of injuries but his performances were great.

 

[crappycraperson]

Kubala and Socrates look shoe horned in that team, otherwise this is a tough one for Marty.. Iniesta looks lost in that midfield. Add another CM in there instead of Raul and he probably has my vote. As it is..

 

[crappycraperson]

@Marty1968 - got an cms as sub?

 

[Marty1968]

@Marty1968 - got an cms as sub?

Got Ballack on the bench to come on and add plenty of energy, tenacity as well as an attacking threat.

 

[MJJ]

Werent both kubala and socrates number 10s?

@Aldo.

 

[MJJ]

Got Ballack on the bench to come on and add plenty of energy, tenacity as well as an attacking threat.

Play him instead of raul, ballack, deschamps and iniesta. Your current midfield would get horribly run over.

 

[Marty1968]

I am surprised you went for that peak Aldo. Ronaldo had a lot of injury problems in 1998-99 and in his 28 matches he just scored 15 goals, which makes it one of his worst seasons in goal output.

He also just scored 1 goal in 6 matches at the highest stage in the Champions League. His PSV season in 95-96 was also full of injuries but his performances were great.

Also surprised he went for the 1970 peak of Pele. Scored just 4 goals in the 1970 WC compared to 10 by Muller. He wasn't even the best scorer in the Brazil team. Jairzinho had a much better world cup!

 

[Moby]

Kubala and Socrates look shoe horned in that team, otherwise this is a tough one for Marty.. Iniesta looks lost in that midfield. Add another CM in there instead of Raul and he probably has my vote. As it is..

They have completely different roles. Socrates is playing as a creative attacking midfielder, like he did at his peak next to Zico (the white Pele) and Kubala is going to play more is a right forward.

@MJJ Kubala is equivalent to a wide forward in the modern game.

@Marty1968 That Pele is exactly why I spent money on him. He still scored truckloads of goals in Brazil during that period, but it was his 1970 avatar that goes the furthest in defining his reputation in the history of the game. One needs to watch him during that tournament to see how he proved to be the talisman, the genius, the one who links up everyone. That team has 5! number 10s in attack, and it needed a player of Pele's calibre to make that work, which he did and to an extent that it is called the greatest National team ever! Here he's doing the same - Socrates and Rivelino perform the same duties as a second creative midfielder. Like Rivelino, Socrates has zero ego and instead he loves working alongside a superstar number 10, he'll fit in beautifully here. As I wrote, keep all your attention on Pele and Ronaldo, and Socrates will get a goal, pretty much like 1982.

Basically players in their preferred roles and setups - not to mention the Brazilian synergy running between Pele, Ronaldo and Socrates.

@Annahnomoss That is Ronaldo's peak in his career, particularly that season at Barca, which is arguably one of the best individual seasons by anyone ever.

 

[Moby]

Ronaldo against Cannavaro (and Thuram and Buffon!)


And this is his peak!

 

[Marty1968]

They have completely different roles. Socrates is playing as a creative attacking midfielder, like he did at his peak next to Zico (the white Pele) and Kubala is going to play more is a right forward.

@MJJ Kubala is equivalent to a wide forward in the modern game.

@Marty1968 That Pele is exactly why I spent money on him. He still scored truckloads of goals in Brazil during that period, but it was his 1970 avatar that goes the furthest in defining his reputation in the history of the game. One needs to watch him during that tournament to see how he proved to be the talisman, the genius, the one who links up everyone. That team has 5! number 10s in attack, and it needed a player of Pele's calibre to make that work, which he did and to an extent that it is called the greatest National team ever! Here he's doing the same - Socrates and Rivelino perform the same duties as a second creative midfielder. Like Rivelino, Socrates has zero ego and instead he loves working alongside a superstar number 10, he'll fit in beautifully here. As I wrote, keep all your attention on Pele and Ronaldo, and Socrates will get a goal, pretty much like 1982.

Basically players in their preferred roles and setups - not to mention the Brazilian synergy running between Pele, Ronaldo and Socrates.

@Annahnomoss That is Ronaldo's peak in his career, particularly that season at Barca, which is arguably one of the best individual seasons by anyone ever.

If you actually look closely at Pele's scoring stats he only scored 11 goals in 28 domestic games in Brazil in 1970.....in fact Pele's scoring record throughout his whole career could be questioned given that many of his goals came in friendlies (526 of his 1,283 goals to be precise). A great player and legend of the game without doubt but only made possible by the greats around him rather than purely by himself.

And then look at his 1971 form.....9 goals in 40 games!! That's not even as good as Charlie Austin this season...

 

[Marty1968]

Poor finishing from Pele.....

 

[Moby]

@Marty1968 There's another guy up front taking care of the goals.

 

[Moby]

So…given Aldo’s attacking line-up my team is going to be based on defending first and fast, direct counter-attacking football.

Where does Iniesta fit in this strategy?

 

[Marty1968]

Where does Iniesta fit in this strategy?

Iniesta is a genius and his knowledge of the game means he can fit into any system not just a tika-taka style. His work rate is outstanding and goes unnoticed and his passing ability to keep the ball moving and drag people out of position is excellent. I agree he could be a little over-run by himself in the middle but Figo and Giggs are both capable of tucking in to help out and both work hard to chase opponents. May need to sub Raul for Ballack though to provide a bit more cover in the middle.

 

[Šjor Bepo]

voted for Aldo, i just cant see how this match can end up differently.....we would think that after he spent fortune on Ronaldo and Pele that the rest of the team will be weaker but no, he ends up with the likes of Bozsik, Socrates, Fachetti and Nesta

marty, your plan is to sit deep and play on the counter but you have 2 strikers that wont help much in defending, Figo and Iniesta that prefer other style of play and also wont contribute much in defending and on top of all that you have 2 attacking fullbacks and Giggs and Figo playing in midfield and not on the wing.....

 

[Annahnomoss]

@Annahnomoss That is Ronaldo's peak in his career, particularly that season at Barca, which is arguably one of the best individual seasons by anyone ever.

That is what is interesting. He had two seasons of great football then a rather poor season with loads of injuries and without being able to score goals like he had done before. I would have said that he was better and more proven in his PSV season where he kept a 1:1 ratio, even if he was also troubled by injuries there.

 

[Moby]

Iniesta is a genius and his knowledge of the game means he can fit into any system not just a tika-taka style. His work rate is outstanding and goes unnoticed and his passing ability to keep the ball moving and drag people out of position is excellent. I agree he could be a little over-run by himself in the middle but Figo and Giggs are both capable of tucking in to help out and both work hard to chase opponents. May need to sub Raul for Ballack though to provide a bit more cover in the middle.

I don't doubt his quality, I am one of his biggest fans on this forum. Neither do I believe he cannot work outside of tiki take, even though out of himself, Messi and Xavi, he's the least likely to adapt, but still.

The problem here is you have in the wrong position, in the wrong setup, with the wrong personnel. In one of the previous all time drafts, antohan picked him and played a standard 4-2-3-1 with no tiki taka and a fairly direct tactic, but he surrounded him with the likes of Laudrup, Rijkaard, Henry and Rivelino. Which meant that not only it would still be a narrow and compact unit but also those players share a decent amount of footballing philosophy with Don Andres and could easily be seen as working together well.

You have gone for a proper traditional 4-4-2 with traditional wing play and two up top. This just not anything near something Iniesta would ever excel in. He looks absolutely lost in there. He's not someone who will ping diagonals to the flanks, or play direct balls up top to the front two, the qualities needed from a CM in a 4-4-2. But in any case, even if it was Xavi here, I'd have the same issue though not to such an extent. I can't see these players excelling in an out and out 4-4-2, that is just the polar opposite of what they are used to.

 

[Moby]

That is what is interesting. He had two seasons of great football then a rather poor season with loads of injuries and without being able to score goals like he had done before. I would have said that he was better and more proven in his PSV season where he kept a 1:1 ratio, even if he was also troubled by injuries there.

Well Serie A back then was one of the best and most competitive leagues ever with some crazy defenses all around the league, you can't compare that to Holland, with all due respect.

 

[Annahnomoss]

Well Serie A back then was one of the best and most competitive leagues ever with some crazy defenses all around the league, you can't compare that to Holland, with all due respect.

Of course you can't! But he doesn't have 3 consecutive world class seasons in his repertoire so are you forced to choose between his injury troubled 95-96 season where he scored for fun or his 98-99 season where he was bang on average as a goalscorer and failed miserably in the CL with just one goal in 6 performances.

Personally I would have chosen the PSV season where he had his best European year of his career with 6 goals in 5 games.

 

[Moby]

Well yeah, it's a bit close between them. I personally rate his exploits in Italy given the competition he was up against more than his work in Holland. Third season anyway, and tbh it was followed by the level of domination I have not witnessed since, right up till that breakdown in 98 WC final.

 

[Marty1968]

Half time sub - Raul off, Ballack on...

 

[Marty1968]

Ballack (2001-2004)

Ballack was one of the greatest German midfielders of recent times, with outstanding vision, work rate and leadership. Twice voted in the world cup team (2002 and 2006) but arguably more effective in 2002. Between 2001 and 2004 at Leverkusen and then Bayern he was voted German player of the year twice and was a major attacking threat as well as solid rock to thwart opponents.

 

[Annahnomoss]

TACTICAL CHANGE MADE BY MARTY
In: Ballack
Out: Raul

 

[Moby]

Way too reliant on the wings, man, not a great strategy against the likes of Gentile and Facchetti. I still don't get what Iniesta is doing there.

 

[Moby]

I'll be back after some time.

Your change has improved your handicap in midfield, but I still stand with the superior unit there. Bozsik and Socrates with Pele dropping deep will be a huge bother to control. And with Ronaldo and Kubala bursting forward for those chances, it's a comfortable route for goal for me. Bozsik in particular should be able to control the game here, and that's a match winning edge, along with others.

On the other hand, much as I love RvN, he's up against Nesta, who's a class above. With your wingers not getting much joy against my fullbacks, this shouldn't be a big threat.

 

[Annahnomoss]

Well yeah, it's a bit close between them. I personally rate his exploits in Italy given the competition he was up against more than his work in Holland. Third season anyway, and tbh it was followed by the level of domination I have not witnessed since, right up till that breakdown in 98 WC final.

Of course top player nevertheless. Just thought the choice was interesting.

 

[Raees]

Must admit I am not too big a fan of where Socrates and Kubala are playing. Dare I say it I have never truly been enamoured with Kubala from the footage I have seen of him and Socrates as a left winger in a 4-2-3-1.. doesn't strike me as legit.

That said the sheer quality of that side is that good that it can negate the slightly flawed tactics of the manager in this instance, due to the fact I do not think Marty has the right quality of side overall to exploit it.

Marty's biggest threat is Giggs and Figo here and they're up against Facchetti and Gentile!

 

[NM]

Close one this. Need some time to think but soooo hard to vote against Pele and Ronaldo.

@Aldo Gentile as a pure right back is a little strange isn't it?

 

[Moby]

Must admit I am not too big a fan of where Socrates and Kubala are playing. Dare I say it I have never truly been enamoured with Kubala from the footage I have seen of him and Socrates as a left winger in a 4-2-3-1.. doesn't strike me as legit.

I was at a loss either way, I told anto earlier the same thing. I had planned to put out this formation that depicts where the players will operate much better, but then I'd have been answering questions left right and center on why it's not symmetric, and what not. I've explained their roles - Socrates is not a left winger here, width on the left is being handled completely by Facchetti. Fair enough if you don't rate Kubala, I have posted a bit about him here so if you have time, go through it. He hasn't got a lot of great footage tbh, and he didn't feature in super teams during his generation, he played for Barca for a decade at the time Madrid were reigning the continent, yet he was rated among the very best and in the same breath as someone like Di Stefano. You do believe that the owners of Barca wouldn't expand a stadium to attract more people to watch someone who's not top notch, right? Or Barca fans wouldn't rate him ahead of every other single player that played for Barca in the 20th century - and the list contains some big guns who'd be received way better here. He's still featured in most all time Barca XIs and for a wide forward that's a huge praise.

Close one this. Need some time to think but soooo hard to vote against Pele and Ronaldo.

@Aldo Gentile as a pure right back is a little strange isn't it?

Can you elaborate? He's equally at home in the middle or as a fullback. His job isn't anything complicated, shut down the flank, end of. BTW I'm not the first one to play him there, in a previous all time draft such as this, Gio used him the same way, and I trust his knowledge way more than mine haha. Basically I personally don't see a big issue as long as we are talking about his defensive work.

 

[NM]

Can you elaborate? He's equally at home in the middle or as a fullback. His job isn't anything complicated, shut down the flank, end of. BTW I'm not the first one to play him there, in a previous all time draft such as this, Gio used him the same way, and I trust his knowledge way more than mine haha. Basically I personally don't see a big issue as long as we are talking about his defensive work.

Well I always saw him more as a CB/RCB than RB tbh. Could be wrong, I was just asking.

 

[antohan]

What the feck? That first formation was ridiculous, monster flanks with a huge gaping hole in the middle of the park. I like width, but you want a spine first and foremost.

Love the look of Aldo's side, don't know who Descamps is, Passarella is played out of position (left-footed), and if swapped back next to Roberto Carlos you will never hear the end of it...

Voting and signing off, don't want to bore you.

 

[Moby]

Well I always saw him more as a CB/RCB than RB tbh. Could be wrong, I was just asking.

RCB would be my preferred as well, or a spare man marker. But he was really versatile, if I could liken him to someone it would be Thuram (strictly position wise) and back then they played a similar system to mine where the left wingback (e.g. Cabrini in Gentile's case) would provide width on one side and have a sweeper + two stoppers. I don't have a sweeper here of course, which is why he's not needed to come inside and cover for anyone, rather just focus on kicking the shit out of his opponent haha.

 

[antohan]

Must admit I am not too big a fan of where Socrates and Kubala are playing. Dare I say it I have never truly been enamoured with Kubala from the footage I have seen of him and Socrates as a left winger in a 4-2-3-1.. doesn't strike me as legit.

I don't think Socrates is supposed to be a left winger here, Facchetti is taking care of the width while Socrates does a more midfield version of Mazzola (fittingly with Monti behind in the holding role giving Socrates a lot of space and freedom to operate).

The actual heatmap wouldn't look like that, Pelé wouldn't be bang in the middle and Kubala would be further up than the other two. But you know how precious people are with symmetry...

 

[Raees]

Fair enough if you don't rate Kubala, I have posted a bit about him here so if you have time, go through it. He hasn't got a lot of great footage tbh, and he didn't feature in super teams during his generation, he played for Barca for a decade at the time Madrid were reigning the continent, yet he was rated among the very best and in the same breath as someone like Di Stefano. You do believe that the owners of Barca wouldn't expand a stadium to attract more people to watch someone who's not top notch, right? Or Barca fans wouldn't rate him ahead of every other single player that played for Barca in the 20th century - and the list contains some big guns who'd be received way better here. He's still featured in most all time Barca XIs and for a wide forward that's a huge praise.

Just thought I would mention the Socrates point as going forwards against tough opponents it might prove a sticky point.

Anyway onto Kubala, It is not that I do not rate him.. I have no doubt he was obviously a great player and I thoroughly enjoyed your write up, I just think from the footage provided he didn't really appeal to me but that is just on a personal level. Some players you look at and you get it right away whereas with Kubala he just looked a tad clumsy yet everyone has him down as supremely gifted technically.. so clearly it is me that is missing something here.

Does anyone have any match footage of him so I can learn more about him.

 

[Annahnomoss]

Marty will have a lot of joy down the flanks with Carlos-Giggs and then Zanetti-Figo considering that Aldo doesn't have the defensive structure to handle overlapping full backs here. On the other hand I don't really like Marty's central midfield as it doesn't really go to well with the rest of the team.

Iniesta being the man who looks a bit like the odd man out and in the defense Passarella will have a hard time being at his roaming best too. Ronaldo-Socrates-Pele is drool worthy and I think they'd manage to get the best out of that central area, with Kubala being fantastic as well.

Very even game for me, looks like a draw but if I have to vote I have to edge it to Aldo. This is Facchetti at home, asked to dominate his flank best he can and even if he won't be close to shutting down the flank he'll be having one heck of a game.

Him and Cabrini were a joy to watch in that role and we rarely get to see it in these drafts.

 

[Moby]

Does anyone have any match footage of him so I can learn more about him.

I'll try to look for something later, but it won't be the first time I'll be trying to find his footage. Lack of high profile games, basically, as they were the ones that are preserved well till now.

 

[Edgar Allan Pillow]

Carlos/Giggs will dominate that wing. Bozsik lacks pace and Gentile is playing a defensive full back. Facchetti vs Zanetti will be delicious to watch...but with Figo there, I still give Marty the edge.

Centrally Ado has far superior players and that tips the balance. Not a big fan of either Socrates nor Kubala in the role they play here, but against Marty's defence, I expect them to still nick a goal or two.

 

[Moby]

Not a big fan of either Socrates nor Kubala in the role they play here

Could you elaborate, particularly about Socrates?