Mike's Sheep Draft QF - Indnyc vs. Marty

[Michaelf7777777]

Indnyc Tactics

Playing a 4-3-3.. Allan Simonsen moves to the right flank and Alvaro Recoba takes the inside left flank. Gullit to pull the strings in midfield with support from Giles and Davids..Gerd Muller to score the goals

Passarella will lead the defense with Hansen (both comfortable on the ball). Lizarazu and Cafu will attack from the wings.

Marty Tactics

My team is set up with versatile players all the way through. Whilst I’ve set up with a back 4, Briegel and Pirri can both step into midfield at any point to switch to a 3-5-2. If Briegel steps up, Pirri sits in centre of the back 3, If Pirri supports Makelele then Cannavaro is absolutely capable of controlling the backline.

Makelele’s job is simple…to sit in front of the backline and break up the attacks and midfield runs. Coluna (one of the best box-to-box midfielders ever) will provide energy in abundance and with Jinky Johnstone’s trickery on the right and Stoichkov on the left, my midfield is solid.

Up front I have a goal machine in Raul and one of the best number 10’s in the business. This formation will certainly favour a second striker in the Keegan mould, with his energy, willingness to run the channels and compete for every ball. With his energy, vision and link play alongside Stoichkov and Johnstone, there won’t be any problem with supply of chances to Raul who was one of the best strikers of his generation.

 

[Michaelf7777777]

@Indnyc @Marty1968

 

[Gio]

Set-pieces will be a bloodbath - Gullit, Briegel, Passarella and Keegan all going up for a header.

 

[Marty1968]

Good luck @Indnyc

A pretty closely matched line-up on both sides but a couple of holes for Indnyc's team i'd suggest. Recoba whilst an upgrade on Walters from the previous round had a very inconsistent career. Yes he had talent but rarely worked hard, was injury prone (only 3 years out of 10 in Serie A did he play in more than 20 games!) so conclude from that he was either injured or not considered good enough. After his Serie A stint he then had two seasons in Greece and again barely played. Don't see him offering much attacking threat against Burgnich and he's not likely to help Lizarazu (a very good upgrade by the way) with Johnstone's constant trickery and pace.

 

[Indnyc]

Good luck @Indnyc

A pretty closely matched line-up on both sides but a couple of holes for Indnyc's team i'd suggest. Recoba whilst an upgrade on Walters from the previous round had a very inconsistent career. Yes he had talent but rarely worked hard, was injury prone (only 3 years out of 10 in Serie A did he play in more than 20 games!) so conclude from that he was either injured or not considered good enough. After his Serie A stint he then had two seasons in Greece and again barely played. Don't see him offering much attacking threat against Burgnich and he's not likely to help Lizarazu (a very good upgrade by the way) with Johnstone's constant trickery and pace.

TBH, I was hoping to get Montero instead of Recoba but got blocked. As much as i agree that Recoba was injury prone and inconsistent, he still had almost a 1 in 3 goal scoring record which isn't bad for his position.

I don't think scoring goals is a concern for me with Muller, Gullit, and Simonsen. Plus there is support from Giles in the midfield

Both Lizarazu and Cafu are amongst the best fullbacks of all time.. Jinky isn't going to get support from Burgnich in the attacking phase so it's hardly like Lizarazu will be double teamed

 

[harms]

Set-pieces will be a bloodbath - Gullit, Briegel, Passarella and Keegan all going up for a header.

With Cannavaro winning it, I assume?

 

[Enigma_87]

Tough one to separate IMO.

Both teams have quality players that are able to make a difference.

I can fully understand why @Indnyc wanted to go 3-5-2. As things stands he has 2 attacking full backs in Lizarazu and Cafu and one uber attacking libero in Passarella. I'd rather have a designated holder like Makelele instead of what looks to be a double pivot with Davids and Giles.

I'm one of the few probably who don't rate Hansen all that much and his lack of pace when there is space to be exploited by Stoichkov could be a decider.

Apart from that - happy to see Simonsen on the right, Recoba needs replacing but Gullit in that zone and alongside Muller looks excellent.

Can see Muller and Gullit troubling the opposition and would've preferred a more complimentary partner for Cannavaro instead of Pirri, but Burgnich compensates with his ability to tuck in.

Generally tilting towards Marty for the moment.

 

[GodShaveTheQueen]

would've preferred a more complimentary partner for Cannavaro instead of Pirri, but Burgnich compensates with his ability to tuck in.

Why is Pirri not a complimentary partner for Cannavaro? With Burgnich there as well, it's perfect

 

[Enigma_87]

Why is Pirri not a complimentary partner for Cannavaro? With Burgnich there as well, it's perfect

Probably a personal preference but to me couple of reasons:
1. I rate Pirri more of a CM than CB. Yes he was a lot like Beckenbauer in a sense and always drew similarities, but from what I've seen(similarly to Hierro) I'd rate him more in midfield.
2. Both him and Cannavaro are on the short side. Cannavaro of course had a good leap and generally was good in the air, but against Gullit two 5ft 9'' center backs could spell trouble.

 

[Indnyc]

Tough one to separate IMO.

Both teams have quality players that are able to make a difference.

I can fully understand why @Indnyc wanted to go 3-5-2. As things stands he has 2 attacking full backs in Lizarazu and Cafu and one uber attacking libero in Passarella. I'd rather have a designated holder like Makelele instead of what looks to be a double pivot with Davids and Giles.

I'm one of the few probably who don't rate Hansen all that much and his lack of pace when there is space to be exploited by Stoichkov could be a decider.

Apart from that - happy to see Simonsen on the right, Recoba needs replacing but Gullit in that zone and alongside Muller looks excellent.

Can see Muller and Gullit troubling the opposition and would've preferred a more complimentary partner for Cannavaro instead of Pirri, but Burgnich compensates with his ability to tuck in.

Generally tilting towards Marty for the moment.

Thanks.. I like Hansen but don’t think he’s a natural fit in this setup.. He would be better in a back 3 with wingbacks..

Of course Recoba was the only option after Montero, and Forlan got blocked

I am generally happy with the team especially upfront and can definitely see the opposition being troubled by the Gullit, Muller, and Simonsen combination

 

[Edgar Allan Pillow]

Passarella, Davids, Gullit, Muller is a fantastic spine. Add in two excellent fullbacks and it's just perfect. Recoba needs to be upgraded later.

Marty's team is solidly built too, but I feel Indnyc's players have a bit more flair and that gives him an edge.

 

[Zlatan 7]

Good teams!!
agree with EAP that spine is fantastic for Indny, @Indnyc I was going to go for Recoba for my third pic but thought it’d be too cruel after blocking the others so went with some politician.

marty, I’ve played Raúl upfront before in a draft and it was picked up that he’s more of a support striker, I guess him and keegan will be alternating

 

[Zlatan 7]

Don’t know I’m going to vote for yet but leaning towards indny

 

[Indnyc]

Good teams!!
agree with EAP that spine is fantastic for Indny, @Indnyc I was going to go for Recoba for my third pic but thought it’d be too cruel after blocking the others so went with some politician.

marty, I’ve played Raúl upfront before in a draft and it was picked up that he’s more of a support striker, I guess him and keegan will be alternating

That would have been peak banter.. I would have played Walters again

 

[Jim Beam]

Why Raul when you have Kubala? Great team otherwise.

 

[GodShaveTheQueen]

Think I didn't explain my vote but here it goes.

1. Indnyc obviously has the better personnel.
2. But chemistry wise, I would say Marty is miles better
3. Passarella-Hansen is not the best of pairing, Davids-Giles the same.
4. With Passarella in a back 4, always good to have a holder who can cover for his forward forays. That is missing too.
5. I like Recoba a lot but his best came from AM/Support striker roles, not as a left winger. Redundant with Gullit IMO.
6. On the other hand, Makelele-Coluna is a great pairing. I already said the defense was brilliant in R1.
7. You have a wing forward Stoichkov on the left supported by an attacking FB Briegel and you have an individual creator Jinky complimented by a defensive Burgnich
8. I dont mind Keegan/Raul too

Probably sounding very biased there, but my vote was decided as soon as I saw the teams.

 

[GodShaveTheQueen]

Why Raul when you have Kubala? Great team otherwise.

I personally think Raul/Keegan is much better than Keegan/Kubala.

Raul can lead the line, Kubala can't and its not the best usage of Keegan as well

 

[Jim Beam]

I personally think Raul/Keegan is much better than Keegan/Kubala.

Raul can lead the line, Kubala can't and its not the best usage of Keegan as well

I personally think that Hansen would ask for a change at half-time with Keegan/Kubala going at him and Passarella leaving him alone at times. It's a proper nightmare to defend. And then you add Stoichkov in the mix.

Just don't rate Raul as a lone striker that much and would prefer putting all three above before him in that position.

 

[GodShaveTheQueen]

Just don't rate Raul as a lone striker that much and would prefer putting all three above before him in that position.

I thought one would count Keegan as more than an AM. Don't mind it as a partnership of two 9.5's

 

[Jim Beam]

It's just that seeing Hansen there I would opt for much power as I could have. Against other CB's probably not so much. Jinky's trickery on the side also helps.

Everything else is nailed in my book @Marty1968 just to make it clear btw.

 

[Marty1968]

I personally think that Hansen would ask for a change at half-time with Keegan/Kubala going at him and Passarella leaving him alone at times. It's a proper nightmare to defend. And then you add Stoichkov in the mix.

Just don't rate Raul as a lone striker that much and would prefer putting all three above before him in that position.

Could've left Kubala with Keegan but Raul was a great striker as well and did very well leading the line at Madrid and for Spain. His scoring record was excellent and just decided to change it up a bit. With briegel on the left could easily become a 343 formation with Stoichkov roaming up alongside Raul and Keegan.

 

[Physiocrat]

Raul is at his best as a second-striker as it allows him to drop deep and link well however since Keegan wasn't a proper playmaker I think it could work reasonably well with them swapping positions a bit. This is unlike the failed Valeron and Raul partnership for Spain NT

 

[Gio]

Raul often played his best football alongside a more physical partner. Him and Morientes were much more than the sum of their parts and you can see Keegan offering some of the same qualities and then some more. Poses the defence a wide range of threats, with Raul dropping into the hole to receive short or slipping by the side of the centre-half on the turn, as Keegan offers a more direct option and works the breadth of the back line. Wouldn’t look much like how it’s laid out in the formation graphic, but it’s a cracking partnership.

 

[Jim Beam]

Yeah, if you don't look much into both formation graphic and tactics description, plus the fact that Raul worked behind Morientes and Morientes being a classical number 9.

Anyway, I did went for Marty as my "power" argument (which is really not an argument, but more of a feeling what could be more useful in this game) has been covered with the fact that Coluna also attacks middle area/the space opened by Keegan. And really like the rest of the team as I said.

 

[Marty1968]

Yeah, if you don't look much into both formation graphic and tactics description, plus the fact that Raul worked behind Morientes and Morientes being a classical number 9.

Anyway, I did went for Marty as my "power" argument (which is really not an argument, but more of a feeling what could be more useful in this game) has been covered with the fact that Coluna also attacks middle area/the space opened by Keegan. And really like the rest of the team as I said.

Yeah to be honest its tough showing the likes of Keegan, Raul and Stoichkov on a graphic as they all covered the majority of the front line. Their ability to interchange is key in this match up and as has been said Passarella, Cafu, Lizarazu are all very attacking defenders, leaving a lot of the donkey work to Hansen and i don't he's up to the challenge. Would also argue that Coluna and Makekele win the midfield battle against Davids and Giles.

 

[Marty1968]

Looks like its all over.....well done @Indnyc

 

[Indnyc]

Looks like its all over.....well done @Indnyc

Good game.. It was really even and you could have just as easily won