After his performances against United enshrined him in footballing folklore, I was always keen to find out just how good he must have been. To dominate a midfield of Scholes and Keane in their relative prime, you must be pretty special. On closer inspection, it seems Redondo did indeed possess galactic talent especially on the ball but he was also quite lazy and inconsistent especially on the domestic front - hence Real's inconsistent form in the League and his defensive game was suspect against players such as Hagi/Valderrama although in the latter stage of his career, he did improve. Take nothing away though, he was a breathtaking ball carrier and that run and skill against Henning Berg was no fluke.
What was particularly interesting about Redondo was that whilst he was very much in need of box to box destroyer types to do the hard yards... i.e. Simeone, Luis Enrique and Karembeu (a trait most deep lying playmakers seem to have) - but he was also at his best when he had creative players who took control of the final third and he just had to play a secondary role, feeding them the ball (his relationships with Maradona and Laudrup were sizzling, and his reliance on players like Raul (who was not a striker!) and Seedorf was evident).
Anyway those that were old enough to watch him more regularly in his prime or early days in La Liga, how highly thought of was he before that performance against United in 2000 and where would you rank him amongst his own generation as well as on the all time front?
@Invictus @Joga Bonito @harms @Gio @Edgar Allan Pillow
