It's late, so since we don't have it, a short post for you to give your thoughts on yesterday's game.
I thought we started brightly and looked especially threatening on the left, with Guedes and Gaya combining well, and I hoped this would be one game where we'd take it to them instead of letting them dictate things. It wasn't to be. The injury to Guedes changed the dynamic of the game. Cheryshev was alright, but we seemed to lose the initiative after GG7 went off. A perfect start, with Parejo, who had been involved well in the build-up, putting in a good corner and Garay scoring at the back post after 90 seconds. Messi scored a great goal to level it up after 20+ minutes. We had our counter-attacks, especially in the second period, but they lacked the finishing touch.
It was frustrating at times to watch Barca with their TikiTaka nonsense. Why do so many people say they love watching how Barcelona play? I watch it and see world class players, yes, but they're passing the ball around for 5 minutes, possession for possession's sake. It's boring and I'd rather watch Betis or other teams.
As ever, it's a fine line, I want to say that we gave them too much respect, same as last season, and sat back too much, but if we'd gone all out would we have got the point? It's always a gamble. So overall, I was satisfied with how we played. Marcelino had clearly done his homework and had drilled into the players what to expect and the result was that, like so many teams their attacks came up against a solid wall. If only we could play as well at the other end, we wouldn't have to worry about top 4.
There wasn't anyone in our team who played badly. Neto didn't have a lot to do, but was well positioned throughout and couldn't do anything for the goal. Garay man of the match, there was one great moment in particular where Messi was making one of his powerhouse runs and Garay anticipated perfectly and dispossessed him. Gaya and Gabriel continued at a high level. Those are our best 3 at the back. Piccini was relatively worse, but not so weak this game. I thought he had a decent game and handled Alba and co well.
Midfield was back to its best. Parejo pulling the strings with some great passes and layoffs and Kondogbia doing the midfield enforcer role. Soler tracked back well and Guedes looked back to his best. Could've been a different result if he'd stayed on. We are just not getting the lucky breaks this season.
Up front, Rodrigo was surprisingly dropped but I thought Gameiro-Bats did well. Gameiro worked hard and did some good layoffs but got caught in moments of indecisiveness which marred a good overall performance. Bats had a good game and if he plays this way the goals will come.
Satisfied overall, but top 4 is not won with home draws and our road ahead looks daunting. Sevilla, our main rivals for top 4 are top and 7 points ahead of us. It doesn't look good with close on a quarter of the season gone but the next 2 months bring an easier road and if we can build on the great performances in defence we have a chance.
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Monday, October 8, 2018
Wednesday, October 3, 2018
Manchester United 0-0 Valencia post-match thoughts
Post-match thoughts rather than a full match write-up, because the truth is that last night's game was a dull snoozefest, devoid of clear chances for each side, so I'd prefer to talk more generally. What we saw on the whole were 2 teams out-of-form, lacking in confidence and performing way below the level that they should, who fought each other to a stalemate. The first 70 minutes were an even enough game, with few clear cut chances. Manchester United were a bit better in the last 20 minutes as they became increasingly desparate to score, but a draw was a fair result.
That's 6 games out of 8 that we've drawn and I don't think that's an accident. After a shaky start to the season, the defence and Neto have really sharpened up. Only 1 goal conceded from open play in the last 6 games is testament to that. Murillo has his fans but for me, he'd be fourth choice. Garay-Gabriel are the best pairing we have at the moment, with Diakhaby a good option when there's a vacancy: usually due to Garay's injuries. The Gabriel-Diakhany partnership has kept three clean sheets in a row. Gabriel, in particular, deserves praise. He's been at a good level recently and controlled Lukaku like a boss last night. Right back, obviously remains the exception.
Central midfield has been more rather than less. Parejo has been average but Kondogbia and Coquelin have been in decent form. Last night, the latter was the only selection surprise, starting on the right, in an obvious attempt to shore up the right side defensive problem. On the whole it didn't work for me. Coquelin looked uncomfortable there and, weirdly, Soler has offered better cover when on, so that didn't work.
All the above qualities are useless if we can't score and for us the problem in this game was the one that has been blatantly obvious all season: useless in the final third with all our attack-minded players below the level we expect and have seen before, with Soler the one closest to the previous level. Rodrigo, Guedes and Cheryshev have been a shadow of the players from last season/the world cup. Guedes was mostly poor last night. Got into good space many times but poor shooting and decision making meant nothing came of it.
Batshauyi has been possibly the biggest disappointment. A less decisive version of Zaza. He's good at holding up the ball but holds it too long and either ends up crowded out and loses possession or, by the time he passes, the other team has had enough time to get men back. Not good enough for a team built on fast counter-attacks. I'd hoped that last night his English experience would lead to improved performance, but no, it was the same old. He just seems to lack any connection and understanding with teammates. I know I defended Zaza leaving but he had good understanding with Rodrigo, Guedes and Soler and did something with the ball. I wish we still had Zaza in the team.
Gameiro, with the exception of the Sociedad game, just reminds me of Mina from 2 seasons ago: runs a lot but mostly for nothing as he usually doesn't get into useful positions or have the understanding with teammates necessary to make something of it.
A couple of general points from this game and others. We seem to be shooting from outside the box quite a bit and most of the time it's well over. Guedes last night and Rodrigo, Batshauyi, Soler, Parejo and Wass, among others, have all disappointed in this sense. The wild shots from distance are a sign of a lack of confidence: patience and waiting for the chance to find a forward would work better. But it we are going to do it, at least hit the target. We might get a lucky bounce or a rebound which allows us to score.
Secondly, professionals of this level shouldn't be letting themselves be suckered into so many silly yellow card fouls. Rodrigo and Kondogbia were unjustly booked last night, but Parejo did his usual stunt of panicking when his man got away from him and picking up a blatant yellow. We can complain about refereeing mistakes (Pogba's play acting last night was disgraceful) but if we give refs the chance to card us, we can't complain.
Overall, pre-season, or when the draw was made, we'd all have taken a draw at Old Trafford, but I feel a bit disappointed. Short term. like the Villarreal game, it's a decent result, but in the overall context, it's a let down. I saw no improvement in attack from us. Man United are in poor form and I definitely feel that the Valencia of a year ago would have won by a goal or two. Conversely, had Man U been in form, I think they'd have beaten us by two goals at least.
A result better for us than them, but one which makes it very hard to reach next round. In the last game, most likely Juventus, even with a weakened team, will beat us and Man U will win at home to Young Boys. That means we need to take 6 points from the Swiss, hope Man U don't win either of the Juve games and then we beat Man U at home. Doable, but I just don't have the confidence in the team, the attack in particular, as they are currently playing to believe in this and so I think we should brace ourselves for Europa league.
PLAYER RATINGS FROM LAST NIGHT
Neto 8 - positioning always good and handled everything MUFC threw at him. Solid performance.
Gaya 7 - has been in good form and showed no weakness last night
Gabriel 8.5 - excellent game. One of his best in a Valencia shirt. Always reliable, cut out everything and gave no quarter.
Garay 7.5 - solid as a rock and dominated them in the air.
Piccini 5 - I'd give him 6/6.5 for attacking contributions and 4 for defence. Wasn't a disaster but had a couple of bad moments, including nearly conceding a penalty. Replacing Montoya with him has been pointless so far.
Guedes 5 - a let down. Poor first half when he got every decision wrong. Better in second period but still not showing enough.
Parejo 6 - passed well and cleaned up okay but loses marks for his usual silly yellow
Kondogbia 8 - best midfielder on the pitch, made Pogba and the rest of their midfield look ordinary
Coquelin 5.5 - worst game since his return, looked a bit lost at times out of position
Rodrigo 5.5 - disappointing display and still looks far off his best. Put in one decent cross which Guedes missed, but that was about it
Batshuayi 4.5 - big let down again and still not showing the ability we know he has
SUBS
Gameiro 5 - not much of an improvement on Bats and had limited opportunities
Soler 6.5 - probably would have been better to start him. Offered more in both attack and defence.
Cheryshev N/A - had a couple of good moments, but far off his world cup level
That's 6 games out of 8 that we've drawn and I don't think that's an accident. After a shaky start to the season, the defence and Neto have really sharpened up. Only 1 goal conceded from open play in the last 6 games is testament to that. Murillo has his fans but for me, he'd be fourth choice. Garay-Gabriel are the best pairing we have at the moment, with Diakhaby a good option when there's a vacancy: usually due to Garay's injuries. The Gabriel-Diakhany partnership has kept three clean sheets in a row. Gabriel, in particular, deserves praise. He's been at a good level recently and controlled Lukaku like a boss last night. Right back, obviously remains the exception.
Central midfield has been more rather than less. Parejo has been average but Kondogbia and Coquelin have been in decent form. Last night, the latter was the only selection surprise, starting on the right, in an obvious attempt to shore up the right side defensive problem. On the whole it didn't work for me. Coquelin looked uncomfortable there and, weirdly, Soler has offered better cover when on, so that didn't work.
All the above qualities are useless if we can't score and for us the problem in this game was the one that has been blatantly obvious all season: useless in the final third with all our attack-minded players below the level we expect and have seen before, with Soler the one closest to the previous level. Rodrigo, Guedes and Cheryshev have been a shadow of the players from last season/the world cup. Guedes was mostly poor last night. Got into good space many times but poor shooting and decision making meant nothing came of it.
Batshauyi has been possibly the biggest disappointment. A less decisive version of Zaza. He's good at holding up the ball but holds it too long and either ends up crowded out and loses possession or, by the time he passes, the other team has had enough time to get men back. Not good enough for a team built on fast counter-attacks. I'd hoped that last night his English experience would lead to improved performance, but no, it was the same old. He just seems to lack any connection and understanding with teammates. I know I defended Zaza leaving but he had good understanding with Rodrigo, Guedes and Soler and did something with the ball. I wish we still had Zaza in the team.
Gameiro, with the exception of the Sociedad game, just reminds me of Mina from 2 seasons ago: runs a lot but mostly for nothing as he usually doesn't get into useful positions or have the understanding with teammates necessary to make something of it.
A couple of general points from this game and others. We seem to be shooting from outside the box quite a bit and most of the time it's well over. Guedes last night and Rodrigo, Batshauyi, Soler, Parejo and Wass, among others, have all disappointed in this sense. The wild shots from distance are a sign of a lack of confidence: patience and waiting for the chance to find a forward would work better. But it we are going to do it, at least hit the target. We might get a lucky bounce or a rebound which allows us to score.
Secondly, professionals of this level shouldn't be letting themselves be suckered into so many silly yellow card fouls. Rodrigo and Kondogbia were unjustly booked last night, but Parejo did his usual stunt of panicking when his man got away from him and picking up a blatant yellow. We can complain about refereeing mistakes (Pogba's play acting last night was disgraceful) but if we give refs the chance to card us, we can't complain.
Overall, pre-season, or when the draw was made, we'd all have taken a draw at Old Trafford, but I feel a bit disappointed. Short term. like the Villarreal game, it's a decent result, but in the overall context, it's a let down. I saw no improvement in attack from us. Man United are in poor form and I definitely feel that the Valencia of a year ago would have won by a goal or two. Conversely, had Man U been in form, I think they'd have beaten us by two goals at least.
A result better for us than them, but one which makes it very hard to reach next round. In the last game, most likely Juventus, even with a weakened team, will beat us and Man U will win at home to Young Boys. That means we need to take 6 points from the Swiss, hope Man U don't win either of the Juve games and then we beat Man U at home. Doable, but I just don't have the confidence in the team, the attack in particular, as they are currently playing to believe in this and so I think we should brace ourselves for Europa league.
PLAYER RATINGS FROM LAST NIGHT
Neto 8 - positioning always good and handled everything MUFC threw at him. Solid performance.
Gaya 7 - has been in good form and showed no weakness last night
Gabriel 8.5 - excellent game. One of his best in a Valencia shirt. Always reliable, cut out everything and gave no quarter.
Garay 7.5 - solid as a rock and dominated them in the air.
Piccini 5 - I'd give him 6/6.5 for attacking contributions and 4 for defence. Wasn't a disaster but had a couple of bad moments, including nearly conceding a penalty. Replacing Montoya with him has been pointless so far.
Guedes 5 - a let down. Poor first half when he got every decision wrong. Better in second period but still not showing enough.
Parejo 6 - passed well and cleaned up okay but loses marks for his usual silly yellow
Kondogbia 8 - best midfielder on the pitch, made Pogba and the rest of their midfield look ordinary
Coquelin 5.5 - worst game since his return, looked a bit lost at times out of position
Rodrigo 5.5 - disappointing display and still looks far off his best. Put in one decent cross which Guedes missed, but that was about it
Batshuayi 4.5 - big let down again and still not showing the ability we know he has
SUBS
Gameiro 5 - not much of an improvement on Bats and had limited opportunities
Soler 6.5 - probably would have been better to start him. Offered more in both attack and defence.
Cheryshev N/A - had a couple of good moments, but far off his world cup level
Saturday, September 29, 2018
Real Sociedad 0-1 Valencia CF
Valencia CF just recorded its first win of the season and oh boy, what a relief. Valencia CF was under immense pressure to start winning and getting results and thankfully the team broke the string of negative results and recorded their first one of the season, hopefully one of many!
I didn't watch the match at all, it was just too early and I was busy at the time, so if anyone of the other writers are reading this and they did watch the match, they can edit this post and write a full match report, otherwise I'm writing this to show my pleasure and relief for the victory and provide an option for all you guys to write your own feelings in the comments section.
It seems Marcelino made a heapeful of changes from the previous match, but this didn't hurt the performance one bit, in fact it was in the same level as the previous match, which I personally though was one of the better performances of the team since the start of the new season.
So great win today, hopefully the first of many!
I didn't watch the match at all, it was just too early and I was busy at the time, so if anyone of the other writers are reading this and they did watch the match, they can edit this post and write a full match report, otherwise I'm writing this to show my pleasure and relief for the victory and provide an option for all you guys to write your own feelings in the comments section.
It seems Marcelino made a heapeful of changes from the previous match, but this didn't hurt the performance one bit, in fact it was in the same level as the previous match, which I personally though was one of the better performances of the team since the start of the new season.
So great win today, hopefully the first of many!
Thursday, September 27, 2018
Valencia CF 1-1 Celta Vigo Match Report
The vicious cycle continues as Valencia CF is unable to find a win in their 6th league match already, this time only managing a draw at the Mestalla against Celta Vigo.
The match started as good as anyone would want for Valencia CF as Michy Batshuayi made in 1-0 in favor of Valencia CF after just 25 minutes of gameplay, realizing Marcelino's wish for Valencia CF to score first, but ultimately did didn't change anything as Celta Vigo equalized late in the match after a wonderful header by Iago Aspas. The few points that led to the goal were a quick counter attack started for Celta Vigo and Valencia CF players weren't keeping up, Piccini on the right side was slow to mark David Junca and afforded him plenty of space to send a dangerous cross into out penalty area. Final point is that Iago Aspas beat Murillo to the ball and with a powerful and precise header slotted the ball into the net.
A series of few mistakes that led to the conceded goal. These things happen, trying to keep a one goal advantage is always hard, so I'd say individual reactions could have been a bit better, but Valencia CF should have scored more than one goal. We did have the chances, Guedes sent in one good shot just by the cross, Wass had a close range effort that went just wide, Rodrigo has few opportunities, Michy got sent the ball in good fairly good positions, but there was no realization. We didn't have stable legs to control that initial ball and shoot accurately.
Truth be told this is getting worrisome at this point, you could say we had bad luck in two of the matches, you could say we could have maybe even won in one of those, but 6 matches without a win is the norm right now and its problematic.
Truth be told we did create chances in this match, but there was no good first touch by anyone and the shooting was atrocious, really inaccurate shooting.
Fortunately just three days later we travel to Real Sociedad where we can try and fix this and hopefully get our first win. I feel like Wass hasn't really contributed anything to be honest in most of these matches, I don't know why Marcelino values him so much, but I would have started Ferran on the right wing to be honest. I just don't see his contribution in this team, I don't think he fits in systematically in this team or at least this formation and tactics. I feel like he might be more suited for a 3 man midfield, but as a CM or a winger he is just not good enough to hold his own. I'd like to see last year's squad fully on the field with Soler on the right wing, Parejo and kondogbia in central midfield, left Guedes and same rest of the players as tonight on the other positions.
One thing that is also frustrating me is that our right back position is very weak, I'm not impressed by Piccini in any way, he is not very good offensively nor defensively. Vezo is realistically not a right back, he can cover for a few games if someone is injured there, like last season, but come on, he is a natural central defender and that is where he is actually best at.
We need to find a new right back in the winter transfer window, loan out Vezo since he is not going to get any play time otherwise,
What do you guys make of our situation, what is the solution?
Wednesday, September 19, 2018
Valencia CF 0-2 Juventus FC Match Report
Talk about a bad start to the season, it doesn't get worse than this. We knew coming into this match that it's going to be very difficult as Juventus have had almost the perfect start to their season, while we've had a terrible start and they are an established quality club who've won the Italian domestic title 7 times in a row and have been challenging for Champions league glory for the past few years as well.
So we knew it was going to be a tough match and we've be lucky to manage a draw against such a powerful side, but things started in a very positive fashion for Valencia CF as Cristiana Ronaldo threw her primadona temper tantrum and got sent off within 30 minutes of the match. I couldn't believe my eyes, this meant that Valencia CF now had a chance to get a result, a real and credible chance to actually win at home in their first champions league match.
Unfortunately Juventus playing with 10 men for 60 minutes didn't change anything, and from the one serious chance Juventus had after being down to 10 men, towards the late stage of the first half, they caused major issues for us. One chance after the 30th minute and they caused Valencia CF a heap of trouble which led to the penalty. I couldn't believe my eyes at the terrible defending from the midfield, where I don't remember which player it was, but he easily moved pass 3 of our players rushing towards him and trying to take the ball, coming at an angle towards him and he'd just move the other way and leave them in the dust, allowing plenty of space down the right side, he passed it down the wing, I think it was Matuidi who had plenty of time and space to setup perfectly and provide a really dangerous cross, it wasn't cleared by our defense, the ball fell further behind and they got a shot on goal, it hit the bar and the rebound was traveling left, Parejo rushed towards the ball, lift his leg way too high and hit Joao Cancelo in the face. It was a clear penalty due to dangerous play and hitting Cancelo.
Okay, we've got the whole second half, we are man up, we can do this I'm thinking. Second half starts, decent start to it, until just five minutes into it, Juventus with their first attack in the second half and they cause a ruckus in our penalty area yet again, then Jeison Murillo concedes a penalty for pushing Leonardo Bonucci.
Second penalty shot for Juventus and second goal, just five minutes in the second half. I didn't want to watch after this point on, all hope was lost for me and I knew we wouldn't be able to do anything, I knew it would finish pretty much 2-0 for Juventus. I still watched the game somewhat, had to minimize the video player at least 10 times because of frustration and the inefficiency of our play,
Ultimately we did decent in attack, had some half decent opportunities, we did pressure them and put them on their back foot several times, but nothing concrete, nothing that you know would result in a goal, we were fishing for a goal, basically just throwing the net wherever and hoping to catch something, it didn't work.
Our midfield was miserable, before Cristina Ronaldo being sent off, they had 68% of possession, they had control, they had the initiative, they were move concise and decisive, etc... Once they were reduced to 10 men they still had so much possession, they still had the more precise attacks, the most dangerous attacks, they defended well, positioned well, run so much and so hard to makeup for one less player.
They played pretty much one level above us with one player down. Would they have won without the two penalties? I don't think so, but the fact is they did earn two penalties, they were justified penalties, I'd be the first one to admit it. They deserved the penalties, our defense was way too shaky and insecure and scrambling to defend, a recipe for disaster.
All this said, I still think we have solid chances in the league, we have a solid squad with a lot of depth, we have enough quality, we still have Kondogbia who will return from injury soon, we also have Coquelin who is actually training and slowly gaining fitness after his season long injury last year, he proved solid when he played last season, we'll have to wait and see if he was reach his full potential after such a long injury and he is rather injury prone, this isn't his first long term injury, he's already had one major injury previously as well, but my point is we have solid players and the potential to be really good.
Sometimes you are mentally in a bad place, when you have several bad results in a row it puts your in a mental block, but the players need to get out of it, one win can change things completely and shift things in our favor.
So we knew it was going to be a tough match and we've be lucky to manage a draw against such a powerful side, but things started in a very positive fashion for Valencia CF as Cristiana Ronaldo threw her primadona temper tantrum and got sent off within 30 minutes of the match. I couldn't believe my eyes, this meant that Valencia CF now had a chance to get a result, a real and credible chance to actually win at home in their first champions league match.
Unfortunately Juventus playing with 10 men for 60 minutes didn't change anything, and from the one serious chance Juventus had after being down to 10 men, towards the late stage of the first half, they caused major issues for us. One chance after the 30th minute and they caused Valencia CF a heap of trouble which led to the penalty. I couldn't believe my eyes at the terrible defending from the midfield, where I don't remember which player it was, but he easily moved pass 3 of our players rushing towards him and trying to take the ball, coming at an angle towards him and he'd just move the other way and leave them in the dust, allowing plenty of space down the right side, he passed it down the wing, I think it was Matuidi who had plenty of time and space to setup perfectly and provide a really dangerous cross, it wasn't cleared by our defense, the ball fell further behind and they got a shot on goal, it hit the bar and the rebound was traveling left, Parejo rushed towards the ball, lift his leg way too high and hit Joao Cancelo in the face. It was a clear penalty due to dangerous play and hitting Cancelo.
Okay, we've got the whole second half, we are man up, we can do this I'm thinking. Second half starts, decent start to it, until just five minutes into it, Juventus with their first attack in the second half and they cause a ruckus in our penalty area yet again, then Jeison Murillo concedes a penalty for pushing Leonardo Bonucci.
Second penalty shot for Juventus and second goal, just five minutes in the second half. I didn't want to watch after this point on, all hope was lost for me and I knew we wouldn't be able to do anything, I knew it would finish pretty much 2-0 for Juventus. I still watched the game somewhat, had to minimize the video player at least 10 times because of frustration and the inefficiency of our play,
Ultimately we did decent in attack, had some half decent opportunities, we did pressure them and put them on their back foot several times, but nothing concrete, nothing that you know would result in a goal, we were fishing for a goal, basically just throwing the net wherever and hoping to catch something, it didn't work.
Our midfield was miserable, before Cristina Ronaldo being sent off, they had 68% of possession, they had control, they had the initiative, they were move concise and decisive, etc... Once they were reduced to 10 men they still had so much possession, they still had the more precise attacks, the most dangerous attacks, they defended well, positioned well, run so much and so hard to makeup for one less player.
They played pretty much one level above us with one player down. Would they have won without the two penalties? I don't think so, but the fact is they did earn two penalties, they were justified penalties, I'd be the first one to admit it. They deserved the penalties, our defense was way too shaky and insecure and scrambling to defend, a recipe for disaster.
All this said, I still think we have solid chances in the league, we have a solid squad with a lot of depth, we have enough quality, we still have Kondogbia who will return from injury soon, we also have Coquelin who is actually training and slowly gaining fitness after his season long injury last year, he proved solid when he played last season, we'll have to wait and see if he was reach his full potential after such a long injury and he is rather injury prone, this isn't his first long term injury, he's already had one major injury previously as well, but my point is we have solid players and the potential to be really good.
Sometimes you are mentally in a bad place, when you have several bad results in a row it puts your in a mental block, but the players need to get out of it, one win can change things completely and shift things in our favor.
Sunday, September 16, 2018
Valencia CF 0-0 Real Betis Match Report
Valencia CF continues its streak of draws and losses as the team is unable to find a victory even in its 4th match of the season, something which would come as a shock to everyone, considering we have an amazing squad on paper, in fact even improved over last season and with more depth.
The few losses we've had have been covered by replacements who should do at the very least the same as the previous players. Unfortunately what's on paper doesn't necessarily translate in practice and this has been the case for Valencia CF.
Last season Simone Zaza and Rodrigo Moreno worked extremely well, they played off of each other and Zaza took the brunt of the opposition defenders on to him due to his physicality, allowing Rodrigo to be freer and have more opportunities. This season Rodrigo Moreno doesn't have such partner, with Mina being a lot smaller and technical, while Gameiro is not a physical player either, so we are left with strikers who have pretty much the same profile. Michy is a physical player and has the build to feature like Zaza was, but he hasn't been given the opportunity yet.
Marcelino also hasn't decided on who to be the starter on the left wing, with him changing it up often, so there is no consistency in the squad and players have been unable to gel together as much as they could have. Last season it was all set, we had pretty much the same starting 10 people, with the more frequent changes in defense with Murillo, Paulista and Garay changing often and rotating. Other than that its been the same 10 man squad and that allowed them to gel really fast and produce results.
This season we've also had a slower integration, as some players arrived late in the transfer season, primarily Goncalo Guedes and we saw when he came in against Betis how much we've missed a player of his caliber. He was far and beyond the most dangerous player on the pitch and caused all sorts of trouble for Real Betis. We've missed that type of chaotic threat. Ferran is still young and inconsistent, Cheryshev is not a flair player, he is rudimentary and solid overall, but doesn't provide that spark.
To me its clear what the issue is, we've not had the best team balance and composition, we need to start Moreno, Michy in the attack, Soler, Parejo, Kondogbia and Guedes in midfield and Garay and whoever in defense. Gaya has been good, the others in defense have been a mixed bag, there needs to be more consistency from whoever is starting in the back.
I think michy and Rodrigo can play off of each other more, Michy will force more defenders on to him with his physicality and dribbling ability, leaving Moreno more space to get better opportunities. We need Guedes on the wing to provide that chaotic threat, bring in some flair to an otherwise straightforward midfield, Soler on the opposite wing to bring in the hard work ethics and provide help in the central midfield as well, Parejo needs to step up his game, while we should hope Kondogbia gets well soon and stays healthy and fit. We need him at his best.
I wasn't impressed with last nights match against Real Betis, we didn't have any sort of serious threats on their goal, some of the bigger threats came in the second half and we caused more trouble for them when Goncalo Guedes came on, otherwise they were sitting stable in defense with no major issues and were comfortable with our ineffective attacks against them.
The few losses we've had have been covered by replacements who should do at the very least the same as the previous players. Unfortunately what's on paper doesn't necessarily translate in practice and this has been the case for Valencia CF.
Last season Simone Zaza and Rodrigo Moreno worked extremely well, they played off of each other and Zaza took the brunt of the opposition defenders on to him due to his physicality, allowing Rodrigo to be freer and have more opportunities. This season Rodrigo Moreno doesn't have such partner, with Mina being a lot smaller and technical, while Gameiro is not a physical player either, so we are left with strikers who have pretty much the same profile. Michy is a physical player and has the build to feature like Zaza was, but he hasn't been given the opportunity yet.
Marcelino also hasn't decided on who to be the starter on the left wing, with him changing it up often, so there is no consistency in the squad and players have been unable to gel together as much as they could have. Last season it was all set, we had pretty much the same starting 10 people, with the more frequent changes in defense with Murillo, Paulista and Garay changing often and rotating. Other than that its been the same 10 man squad and that allowed them to gel really fast and produce results.
This season we've also had a slower integration, as some players arrived late in the transfer season, primarily Goncalo Guedes and we saw when he came in against Betis how much we've missed a player of his caliber. He was far and beyond the most dangerous player on the pitch and caused all sorts of trouble for Real Betis. We've missed that type of chaotic threat. Ferran is still young and inconsistent, Cheryshev is not a flair player, he is rudimentary and solid overall, but doesn't provide that spark.
To me its clear what the issue is, we've not had the best team balance and composition, we need to start Moreno, Michy in the attack, Soler, Parejo, Kondogbia and Guedes in midfield and Garay and whoever in defense. Gaya has been good, the others in defense have been a mixed bag, there needs to be more consistency from whoever is starting in the back.
I think michy and Rodrigo can play off of each other more, Michy will force more defenders on to him with his physicality and dribbling ability, leaving Moreno more space to get better opportunities. We need Guedes on the wing to provide that chaotic threat, bring in some flair to an otherwise straightforward midfield, Soler on the opposite wing to bring in the hard work ethics and provide help in the central midfield as well, Parejo needs to step up his game, while we should hope Kondogbia gets well soon and stays healthy and fit. We need him at his best.
I wasn't impressed with last nights match against Real Betis, we didn't have any sort of serious threats on their goal, some of the bigger threats came in the second half and we caused more trouble for them when Goncalo Guedes came on, otherwise they were sitting stable in defense with no major issues and were comfortable with our ineffective attacks against them.
Wednesday, September 12, 2018
Nacho Gil and the international break
Valencia announced this week that Nacho Gil will join Elche on loan for the remainder of the season, however the transfer cannot go through until the transfer window opens again on 1 January. Gil has had a bit of a disappointing time at Valencia. He did well for the reserve teams, thought he deserved better, and submitted a transfer request (with Villarreal interested) in January 2017, which the club refused. Voro brought him on as a sub in a couple of games the following month, before dropping him. Marcelino brought him back into the set-up for a few Copa del Rey games and he also started on the left in the league away to Eibar and Las Palmas, before being loaned out to the latter. His time at LP was also a disappointment and he clearly hasn't made the grade at Valencia, so a loan with a view to moving him on permanently, seems to be the best option.
During the international break, Valencia took whatever players were not on international duty to Alcoyano for a friendly, winning 3-0 (highlights here.) Gameiro and Mina both did well and scored the first two goals but the best player was Ferran Torres, playing from the left, who capped off a great performance with a super goal.
The international break was a good one overall for Valencia players. Batshuayi scored twice for Belgium, Cheryshev scored for Russia in Turkey and for Spain, Rodrigo featured in both Nations league games and took full advantage of Costa's absence. Against England he provided an assist for the equaliser before scoring what turned out to be the winner and was widely praised for his performance, with some even naming him man of the match. Against Croatia he was overshadowed by a quality performance from Asensio, but still managed to slot home in a 6-0 rout. The other good thing in that game was at left back
with Gaya finally making his debut. He justified his selection with a solid performance, covering well in defence and contributing several quality crosses. He wasn''t the only debutant, Neto made his first appearance for Brazil, playing the full 90 minutes and keeping a clean sheet in a 5-0 win over El Salvador in the USA. Murillo also played all 90 minutes of a friendly for Colombia. Guedes was maybe the one who could be disappointed, as he was an unused sub in both Portugal games, but as he hasn't played a competitive match yet this season, it's understandable.
Valencia have a tough and critical week coming up. (Tough month actually.) First we welcome Betis to Mestalla on Saturday before opening up our Champions league campaign against Juventus, then finally going to Villarreal. Our start so far has been weak, but not disastrous: the results against Atletico and Levante were the same as we got last season, with the concern centring on the Espanyol defeat. However, we are only 2 points behind rivals like Sevilla, Betis, Bilbao and Sociedad and ahead of Villarreal, so can quickly make up ground if we start winning. So no need to panic yet, but if we do not get a win against Betis, alarm bells will start to ring. While they've made a few good additions in the summer, they remain weak at the back and Quique Setien's gung-ho approach is ideal for our counter attacking style, which is why we put 8 past them last season, so I expect a win.
During the international break, Valencia took whatever players were not on international duty to Alcoyano for a friendly, winning 3-0 (highlights here.) Gameiro and Mina both did well and scored the first two goals but the best player was Ferran Torres, playing from the left, who capped off a great performance with a super goal.
The international break was a good one overall for Valencia players. Batshuayi scored twice for Belgium, Cheryshev scored for Russia in Turkey and for Spain, Rodrigo featured in both Nations league games and took full advantage of Costa's absence. Against England he provided an assist for the equaliser before scoring what turned out to be the winner and was widely praised for his performance, with some even naming him man of the match. Against Croatia he was overshadowed by a quality performance from Asensio, but still managed to slot home in a 6-0 rout. The other good thing in that game was at left back
Valencia have a tough and critical week coming up. (Tough month actually.) First we welcome Betis to Mestalla on Saturday before opening up our Champions league campaign against Juventus, then finally going to Villarreal. Our start so far has been weak, but not disastrous: the results against Atletico and Levante were the same as we got last season, with the concern centring on the Espanyol defeat. However, we are only 2 points behind rivals like Sevilla, Betis, Bilbao and Sociedad and ahead of Villarreal, so can quickly make up ground if we start winning. So no need to panic yet, but if we do not get a win against Betis, alarm bells will start to ring. While they've made a few good additions in the summer, they remain weak at the back and Quique Setien's gung-ho approach is ideal for our counter attacking style, which is why we put 8 past them last season, so I expect a win.
Sunday, September 2, 2018
La Liga Matchday #3 | Levante UD 2-2 Valencia CF | Match Report
Valencia CF are still without a win this La Liga season, managing only 2 points from 9 in the first three games. With the amount of money spent, this is surprising and disappointing, especially in the previous game and this one where we really should've been the dominant side. However, with the performances displayed, it really isn't surprising. This was another sloppy performance, no matter which way you look at it. And no, we can't use Guedes not playing as an excuse. One player can't solve everything. Some problems in attack and breaking down defenses might be addressed but poor finishing, defensive positioning, communication, defending and passing cannot be solved.
LINEUP
LINEUP
Usual formation but with a change in lineup. We all expected a change in defense after recent poor performances but oddly that was the only part, other than the goalkeeper, which remained unchanged. I don't know what the issue is with Murillo being sidelined but it's a bit concerning if it is the case. In midfield with Kondogbia feeling some discomfort, Wass slotted in next to Parejo in midfield. I was a bit concerned seeing the team sheet with two attack minded midfield players. But with Coquelin injured and Racic relegated to the B team, Wass or Soler were the only options. Soler did make the lineup again on the right with Cheryshev filling in on the left where Wass played in previous games. Guedes was not deemed ready/fit yet so he was left out of the lineup completely. Santi Mina was replaced with Gameiro after not making an impact in previous games. Rodrigo completed the attack.
MATCH
The game didn't begin in a promising way. Lots of poor passes and as a result lots of lost possession from both sides. Not the focus and mentality I expected in a game where we needed a win.
What happened at the 13th minute mark was shocking and embarrassing. I think it was a culmination of almost everything that has failed in recent performances. Parejo loses possession in midfield with a misplaced pass. Morales claims possession and knocks it past Wass who had slide in to tackle. Parejo tries the same but Morales leaves him in the dust as well. Diakhaby comes in and decides to repeat the same sliding challenge for a third time, but with the same result. Morales carries the ball forward with some pressure from Soler who had barely managed to catch up but was shrugged off as well. At this point it was Paulista and Gaya against Morales, Roger and Boateng. Gaya left his man and slid into a challenge on Morales who laid the ball off for Boateng on the left with Soler nearby just watching. Paulista just stood in the center screaming with his arms up at the linesman, presumably claiming offside. Boateng shoots and Neto saves, and it seemed like danger was averted, only he let the ball go. Straight into the path of Roger who couldn't miss from there. Piccini had barely made an effort to run back as well. 7 players and a goalkeeper versus 3 players on the break and they still manage a way through. I just couldn't believe it.
After three minutes of despair, thinking about how awful that play was from our end, some relief came in the form of a Valencia goal. It was a pretty simple progression, Wass played the ball out from the back with a ground pass to Rodrigo who picked out Soler out wide on the right. Soler then spotted out the run of Cheryshev into the space between the two defenders, delivered a cross and Cheryshev connected well and headed the ball into the net. Solid goal for it's simplicity but done with great execution from Soler and Cheryshev. It was much needed and a great way to respond.
Three minutes later still, Gaya who cut inside from an advanced position on the left to find a great run from Rodrigo with a great cross, only it was just out of reach and an almost certain goal had there been a connection.
Valencia would produce another great chance via Gaya again in the 25 minute. Gaya had made his way forward again, played Cheryshev through to the goal line where he would cut the ball back to Gamerio in space. The ball was slightly behind Gameiro and he fumbled the effort. I think he should've scored it still especially with his experience and finishing ability.
Levante would respond with a cross from the right by Roger to the center where it was headed away by Paulista, straight to Morales on the left side. He would have the time and space, under little pressure or effort from Piccini, to produce a good shot and Valencia would be saved by the crossbar. Just before half time, Neto would manage to save a free kick on target from distance.
Levante would come again 5 minutes later, now having gained the momentum. A diagonal ball from the right from Bardhi was played across to Roger who made a run in between Piccini and Paulista. They both tried to close him down but he slipped through them with minimal effort, looked up and found Neto in an advanced position of his line needlessly. He somehow got a shot across goal to the opposite side with little power but the accuracy was all that mattered. Horrible defending and keeping again.
Into the second half break where Marcelino had some time to address some issues and attempt to still win the game. He refrained from making substitutions at this point.
Only a minute into the second half, Boateng made a run out wide on the right and Diakhaby went out to pressure him, the former left him in the dust on the ground and made a run along the goal line, sent the ball into the box only to be saved by Neto.
Six minutes later, the same combo that produced our first goal would strike again. Cheryshev would cross the ball into the box from the left, finding no Valencia players. The Levante defender would try to collect the ball for a simple clean up, only he didn't see the charging run of Soler who would get in ahead of him and claim possession. The defender panics and fouls him, conceding a penalty which Parejo converts easily. 2-2.
Approaching the 60 minute mark, Cheryshev would find himself in possession out on the left again, delivers a great cross finding Gamerio in a great position ahead of a sea of Levante players, the latter would make contact but the ball hits the post. Great positioning, great cross but the finishing is off again. Five minutes later, the same combination, Cheryshev and Gamerio, with the same play, a cross from the left, only for Gamiero's header to find the post again. It just wasn't his day. All the right positioning and runs but not the finishing.
Marcelino would resort to the substitutions now, taking off both players involved in the last play. Batshuyai came on for Gameiro, while Ferran Torres replaced Cheryshev.
Ferran Torres would have an almost instant impact. Just five minutes after coming on, he taken on two Levante defenders out wide on the left, slips through between both of them with some trickery but gets taken out to avert danger. Coke, who had taken him out had already been booked and would find himself picking up a second one and getting sent off. Valencia would have 14 minutes to play with an extra man advantage to find a win.
Marcelino, now with an advantage, brings on Santi Mina for Soler, to add more fire power. Santi Mina would score very soon after coming on only to be ruled offside.
Finally, Rodrigo would get one of the best chances of the game after Ferran Torres picks him out in space at the far post, only for Rodrigo to miss the ball completely. He really had to score there.
Even with five minutes of added time, the victory would still elude Valencia despite the abundances of great chances.
GOALS
1-0 Roger (13')
1-1 Cheryshev (16')
2-1 Roger (33')
2-2 Parejo, pen. (52')
PLAYER RATINGS
Neto 1 - Mistakes like what happened with the first goal has become a more frequent occurrence and should never happen. Awful positioning for the second goal. Made one good save from a free kick.
Piccini 1 - A defensive liability. It's not just the quality of the defending, he simply makes no effort to close down or track back when possession is lost. Nowhere is sight for the first goal, completely sloppy on the second.
Diakhaby 1.5 - Was exposed far too many times. One time resulted in the first goal, the others managed to escape free of consequence.
Paulista 1 - It's really not a good sign when an experienced defender just stands around screaming and waving his arms at the linesman and doesn't act at all. That was him for the first goal. Failed to accomplish anything in stopping the second goal.
Gaya 5 - provided some dangerous attacking play that resulted in a chance for Rodrigo who couldn't reach it and the other for Gameiro who hit the post.
Wass 3 - his distribution, passing and playing the ball out from the back are all good in this position but he didn't seem to have the defensive ability that a CDM would provide.
Parejo 3.5 - poor challenge and lost possession that lead to the first goal. Good conversion on penalty.
Soler 7 - great rebound game after a sub par last one. Commendable effort to make quite the run tracking back to help the defense in the first goal. Great vision and cross to pick out Cheryshev for our first goal. Great work ethic again in claiming the ball ahead of the Levante defender and drawing in the foul for the equalizing penalty.
Cheryshev 8 - amazing performance today. Had the position and technique to anticipate and connect with Soler's cross to score the first goal. He put in several more great crosses all game, one of which lead to the penalty, while the many others were dangerous but the resulting chances hit the post or were missed.
Rodrigo 4 - remained quite involved in the plays all through the game but it was disappointing to see him miss such easy chances
Gameiro 4.5 - got in all the right positions but failed to convert any of them. Could've easily scored a hat trick today with slightly better finishing.
Subs:
Ferran Torres 6 - instant impact substitution. Gave us more than a fighting chance by dribbling past two defenders and drawing a red card foul from Coke. Proceeded to provide dangerous crosses for the remained of the game.
Batshuyai 4 - didn't really do much since coming on.
Santi Mina 4 - quick to score after coming on, only it was offside. No impact after that.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Pretty disappointing game all round. What's worrying me the most is that I am not seeing any improvements. We have the squad to compete but we're doing anything but that. That implies to be that the errors are not being spotted (unlikely since they're obvious), the players aren't responding to the criticism for one reason or the other, the changes need time, or there is a lack of belief.
I said in the introduction that Guedes can't solve everything and I stand by that. But what he can do is spark some renewed energy into the team. But the defense needs work. Major work. I don't recall ever having to give such low ratings all round in defense. And the fact that we have two ready and able defenders just sitting on the sidelines and not being tried is worrying. If Marcelino trusts these two over the other ones and these ones are performing this poorly, how bad must the other two be?
That being said, the offense has some rays of hope. Soler and Cheryshev put in a great effort and together rescued the team from a loss by setting up the two goals, both after having fallen back by one. Ferran Torres had a promising appearance off this bench, while both Gameiro and Rodrigo were on the verge of a goal fest albeit the finishing let them down.
Hopefully, getting Kondogbia back and a Guedes return in the second game can do something for the confidence of the players at the very least. Both our next matches are at home so that should further instill some belief and confidence. The good thing is we have a lot of time to fix things. Our next competitive match is on the 15th at home to Betis and the following is the first Champions League group stage game, also at home, against a tough Juventus side. In addition, our next game is a friendly on September 5th, against Segunda B side CD Alcoyana at 20:30 CEST (14:30 EDT), so we have a great chance to test out some changes and maybe give some players a run out into fitness. That being said, it is also the international break, until our next La Liga game, so only those not called up will be available to Marcelino.
As usual, let everyone know your ideas, thoughts and comments about the game in the comments below. What's the issue with the defense? Who impressed? Who disappointed?
Levante vs Valencia CF Match Preview
Valencia CF start to the season hit a bump last week after a surprising and disappointing loss against RCD Espanyol, a team which Valencia CF has historically had little trouble disposing off most of the times.
The first match at home with Atletico Madrid was a positive draw against a very strong opponent who just beat Real Madrid 4-2 in the Super Cup, so expectations were high for the next match and for the season, but all that came crashing down against a solid and tight Espanyol side. Truth be told Espanyol didn't have too many chances and most of their goals came from individual mistakes in our defense, but Valencia forwards on the other hand wasted too many opportunities, which if converted could have changed the course of the match.
Last match is history now though and Valencia CF will be looking to correct the course with a win against rivals Levante. Even though they are a regional rival and always provide good opposition to Valencia CF, we've had good results against them overall.
Another good piece of information is that Valencia CF signed Goncalo Guedes from PSG after a long and drawn out saga, but we got the player and he signed a 6 year deal with Valencia CF with no buy-back options for PSG, with the player release clause set at 300 million euros. Even though this is a big signing for Valencia CF that makes Guedes the most expensive player in VCF history, the player will unfortunately not feature for Valencia CF in today's match against Levante as he trained separately from the rest of the PSG squad all summer long, while only training twice with Valencia CF once joining, so he was left out of the squad.
After the last showing I'm sure Marcelino will make few changes to the team, I believe that Murillo might get his first start this season, I think Piccini will still get the nod over Vezo, though any costly mistake against Levante and he will be dropped from the starting line-up. Kondogbia is injured and thus out of the squad, so that will probably feature Soler in central midfield, with Cheryshev on the left wing, Wass on the right wing and I think Santi Mina will be dropped in favor of Kevin Gameiro. Santi Mina has showed little in the two matches he's started, he did provide a good chance to Moreno last match, but has missed some shots himself and has gone missing for large parts of the last two matches.
Today's match is one of the most exciting ones in a while, since we really have no clue what is Valencia's level after two games, while Levante has been a tough cookie to crack often time, so its going to be really interesting to see how the team does, especially since Kondogbia is missing through injury, so a bit of a shakeup expected in the starting lineup. I hope Valencia CF wins and wins so easily, but in reality my head tells me that its going to be a very tough match and one that we would be very happy to win as a draw seems more likely and in line.
The first match at home with Atletico Madrid was a positive draw against a very strong opponent who just beat Real Madrid 4-2 in the Super Cup, so expectations were high for the next match and for the season, but all that came crashing down against a solid and tight Espanyol side. Truth be told Espanyol didn't have too many chances and most of their goals came from individual mistakes in our defense, but Valencia forwards on the other hand wasted too many opportunities, which if converted could have changed the course of the match.
Last match is history now though and Valencia CF will be looking to correct the course with a win against rivals Levante. Even though they are a regional rival and always provide good opposition to Valencia CF, we've had good results against them overall.
Another good piece of information is that Valencia CF signed Goncalo Guedes from PSG after a long and drawn out saga, but we got the player and he signed a 6 year deal with Valencia CF with no buy-back options for PSG, with the player release clause set at 300 million euros. Even though this is a big signing for Valencia CF that makes Guedes the most expensive player in VCF history, the player will unfortunately not feature for Valencia CF in today's match against Levante as he trained separately from the rest of the PSG squad all summer long, while only training twice with Valencia CF once joining, so he was left out of the squad.
After the last showing I'm sure Marcelino will make few changes to the team, I believe that Murillo might get his first start this season, I think Piccini will still get the nod over Vezo, though any costly mistake against Levante and he will be dropped from the starting line-up. Kondogbia is injured and thus out of the squad, so that will probably feature Soler in central midfield, with Cheryshev on the left wing, Wass on the right wing and I think Santi Mina will be dropped in favor of Kevin Gameiro. Santi Mina has showed little in the two matches he's started, he did provide a good chance to Moreno last match, but has missed some shots himself and has gone missing for large parts of the last two matches.
Today's match is one of the most exciting ones in a while, since we really have no clue what is Valencia's level after two games, while Levante has been a tough cookie to crack often time, so its going to be really interesting to see how the team does, especially since Kondogbia is missing through injury, so a bit of a shakeup expected in the starting lineup. I hope Valencia CF wins and wins so easily, but in reality my head tells me that its going to be a very tough match and one that we would be very happy to win as a draw seems more likely and in line.
Thursday, August 30, 2018
UEFA Champions league draw
So now we know our opponents: Juventus, Manchester United and Young Boys Berne.
A tough group, Juventus will be the favourites and Young Boys the underdogs. Our most likely route to qualification involves taking 6 points off the Swiss and hoping that Man United continue their malaise such that we take points off them.
Interestingly, Valencia have never faced either Young Boys or Juventus in Europe before. We have faced Manchester Utd on 4 occasions before. We beat them in the 1982/83 UEFA Cup first round. We then faced them in the Champions league 3 times. In 1999/2000 we drew 0-0 at Mestalla and lost 0-3 away in the second group stage. The following year two draws against them in the second group stage. The most recent occasion in 2010/11 we lost 0-1 at Mestalla and were leading at Old Trafford until they equalised late in the game.
Fixture dates and times are
A tough enough start, we really need to take some points from the first two, then go into the double header vs Young Boys in the middle and take 6 points.
Lastly, Guedes' contract was confirmed earlier by the club. He signs until 2024 with a release clause of 300 million euro (!) The release clause is monster, I'd heard 175m talked about so this figure is obviously good as it shows again that the club is willing to protect its assets. If he has a great season and the predators appear we can wave them away or make them pay a suitable 9-figure sum.
A tough group, Juventus will be the favourites and Young Boys the underdogs. Our most likely route to qualification involves taking 6 points off the Swiss and hoping that Man United continue their malaise such that we take points off them.
Interestingly, Valencia have never faced either Young Boys or Juventus in Europe before. We have faced Manchester Utd on 4 occasions before. We beat them in the 1982/83 UEFA Cup first round. We then faced them in the Champions league 3 times. In 1999/2000 we drew 0-0 at Mestalla and lost 0-3 away in the second group stage. The following year two draws against them in the second group stage. The most recent occasion in 2010/11 we lost 0-1 at Mestalla and were leading at Old Trafford until they equalised late in the game.
Fixture dates and times are
1. Valencia - Juventus (19.september) 21.00
2. Manchester United - Valencia (2.october) 21.00
3. Young Boys - Valencia (23.october) 19.00
4. Valencia - Young Boys (7.november) 19.00
5. Juventus - Valencia (27.november) 21.00
6. Valencia - Manchester United (12.december) 21.00
A tough enough start, we really need to take some points from the first two, then go into the double header vs Young Boys in the middle and take 6 points.
Lastly, Guedes' contract was confirmed earlier by the club. He signs until 2024 with a release clause of 300 million euro (!) The release clause is monster, I'd heard 175m talked about so this figure is obviously good as it shows again that the club is willing to protect its assets. If he has a great season and the predators appear we can wave them away or make them pay a suitable 9-figure sum.
Tuesday, August 28, 2018
Valencia sign Ricardo Campos / more on Guedes
Another addition to the ranks today. Valencia have added Ricardo Campos from Juventus under 19s.
He joins on loan for a season, with Valencia having the option to make it permanent for around a million euros. Campos is 18 years old and can play across the front line, but mostly plays as a right winger and occasionally as a second striker. He was a Benfica youth product before Pablo Longoria brought him to Italy in 2016. He enjoyed a great first season, scoring 10 goals in 20 appearances for Juve U-17, but spent most of last season on the bench. However, Longoria obviously judges him worth a second look and he'll likely be assigned to Valencia Mestalla for assessment and, with Soler, Ferran and Wass covering the right wing spot, will probably be limited to Copa del Rey appearances for the first team, if at all.
Further on Guedes, sources now say he will join on loan for the season, with Valencia then having an obligatory buy clause of 40 million, with a further 10 million in "achievable" add-ons and 7 million in "difficult to achieve" add-ons. Presumably the achievable add-ons will cover things like goals scored, appearances, maybe Valencia qualifying for Champions league etc and the difficult ones will possibly be similar to those of Andre Gomes' sale to FCB: winning La Liga, reaching Champs league semis, nominated for Balon D'or etc. (I'm speculating, since sources don't clarify what they are.) PSG don't have a buy back option as the player himself was adamant he didn't want this and he had burnt his bridges there anyway by refusing more lucrative offers from England. There's also been no mention in sources of PSG getting any % of a future deal.
Amid the euphoria, there have been some Valencia fans questioning the deal, based on Valencia's poor financial situation and the fact he faded in the second half of the season and had a disappointing world cup. With Valencia's net transfer spending in this window the 10th highest, it does put considerable pressure on the club to achieve top 4, as otherwise we're in for another "summer of 16" (Gomes, Mustafi and Alcacer sold) where we'll be selling at least 2 key players, and probably more, to balance the books.
Valencia have also announced they'll play a friendly on 5 September against Alcoyano of Segunda B. That's the day of the international break, so it will effectively function as a training match for those not on international duty. Lastly, Dynamo Kyiv overcoming a 3-1 deficit against Ajax tonight will provide Valencia with 1.108 million in Champs league prize money.
He joins on loan for a season, with Valencia having the option to make it permanent for around a million euros. Campos is 18 years old and can play across the front line, but mostly plays as a right winger and occasionally as a second striker. He was a Benfica youth product before Pablo Longoria brought him to Italy in 2016. He enjoyed a great first season, scoring 10 goals in 20 appearances for Juve U-17, but spent most of last season on the bench. However, Longoria obviously judges him worth a second look and he'll likely be assigned to Valencia Mestalla for assessment and, with Soler, Ferran and Wass covering the right wing spot, will probably be limited to Copa del Rey appearances for the first team, if at all.
Further on Guedes, sources now say he will join on loan for the season, with Valencia then having an obligatory buy clause of 40 million, with a further 10 million in "achievable" add-ons and 7 million in "difficult to achieve" add-ons. Presumably the achievable add-ons will cover things like goals scored, appearances, maybe Valencia qualifying for Champions league etc and the difficult ones will possibly be similar to those of Andre Gomes' sale to FCB: winning La Liga, reaching Champs league semis, nominated for Balon D'or etc. (I'm speculating, since sources don't clarify what they are.) PSG don't have a buy back option as the player himself was adamant he didn't want this and he had burnt his bridges there anyway by refusing more lucrative offers from England. There's also been no mention in sources of PSG getting any % of a future deal.
Amid the euphoria, there have been some Valencia fans questioning the deal, based on Valencia's poor financial situation and the fact he faded in the second half of the season and had a disappointing world cup. With Valencia's net transfer spending in this window the 10th highest, it does put considerable pressure on the club to achieve top 4, as otherwise we're in for another "summer of 16" (Gomes, Mustafi and Alcacer sold) where we'll be selling at least 2 key players, and probably more, to balance the books.
Valencia have also announced they'll play a friendly on 5 September against Alcoyano of Segunda B. That's the day of the international break, so it will effectively function as a training match for those not on international duty. Lastly, Dynamo Kyiv overcoming a 3-1 deficit against Ajax tonight will provide Valencia with 1.108 million in Champs league prize money.
Monday, August 27, 2018
Valencia sign Guedes
The long saga is finally over. Valencia confirmed this evening that agreement has been reached to sign Guedes.
He will travel to Valencia tomorrow to sign his contract. Full details of the transfer are not yet available, sources suggest 40 million euros plus 10 million more in unspecified performance related add-ons, but whichever it is, it will easily be the most expensive transfer in Valencia's history, far exceeding the 30 million we paid for Rodrigo 4 years ago. This has been dragging on for months, Valencia have been trying to sign the player since October last year and he was linked with several other clubs, with Arsenal the most closely linked, but the player repeatedly made it clear that he only wanted to play for Valencia. The determination on both the part of Valencia and the player overcame PSG's high demands.
Assuming there are no late shocks, like the exit of Rodrigo or another senior player I think this has been a really good transfer window. Just keeping Kondogbia and Guedes would have been a coup in itself but we added other players and it's now up to those players to overcome the Espanyol disappointment and prove the worth in the tough set of games in the 6 weeks ahead.
I'll update this post when more details of the Guedes transfer become available.
Assuming there are no late shocks, like the exit of Rodrigo or another senior player I think this has been a really good transfer window. Just keeping Kondogbia and Guedes would have been a coup in itself but we added other players and it's now up to those players to overcome the Espanyol disappointment and prove the worth in the tough set of games in the 6 weeks ahead.
I'll update this post when more details of the Guedes transfer become available.
La Liga Matchday #2 | RCD Espanyol 2-0 Valencia CF | Match Report
A disappointing away game after a promising start to the season. Valencia came into the game on the back of a great opener against a tough and well-drilled Atletico Madrid team where a 1-1 draw was less than what they deserved with the number of chances created. Espanyol also came into the game with a 1-1 draw away to Celta Vigo. We were the favorites to win on paper but it didn't matter in the midst of many mistakes committed, especially in defense. The mistakes were punished and we truly didn't deserve a win today.
LINEUP
LINEUP
Nothing new in terms of formation, still and probably always will be 4-4-2. The lineup remained unchanged from last game minus Garay who is sidelined due to injury with Diakhaby favored as the replacement by Marcelino. According to Superdeporte, Marcelino finds him really promising and is impressed with him. This is already starting a bit of debate with regards to the CB position. It's good we have 5 to choose from to maintain competition.
MATCH
The first ten minutes of the first half featured very quick and aggressive pressing from both sides. Any possession was quickly close down and some fouls were made.
On the verge of 10 minutes, the Valencia half chances would come in. Wass heads a long ball coming from midfield towards Rodrigo in the box who broke free from his defender but couldn't make contact with the ball as it was too far ahead. Two minutes later, it would be Gaya making a forward run and finding Rodrigo with a cross and the latter made contact with a header but it wasn't enough to beat Diego Lopez. A few seconds later Santi Mina, would try a wild effort from range but would miss the target.
The 17th minute saw the first real chance at goal for Valencia. Piccini would play a nice through ball into Soler's run. The latter would then dribble past an Espanyol player to the goal line and pull the ball back for Santi Mina whose shot was blocked by a defender, more specifically the defender's arms. This sent the players and Marcelino in hysteria and demands of a VAR check. The VAR officials dismissed the claims in a minute or so much to the dislike of the players. At first glance, the distance between the player's hands and the ball was too small to get out of the way and it was a case of ball to hand rather than hand to ball. However, the last factor is intent and I believe it was totally intentional. There is no way anyone tries to block that shot with their head. The player wanted to get his body in front of the ball and he didn't care whether it was his arms or not. My biased opinion is a penalty for intent, the ball was going into the net had he not done it, but it is what it is.\
Espanyol's first threat would come on the stroke of 32 minutes when Javi Lopez crossed the ball from the right into the box to find Sergio Garcia who would send a strong header towards the goal, only to be denied by the crossbar. The rebound would fall to Iglesias who would send another header towards goal but the shot was cleared off the line by a reflex save from Neto. Espanyol players insisted the ball crossed the line but VAR would quickly and correctly dismiss the claims. Great save by Neto, but static defending by Paulista who just let his man go for the first header. Piccini was also a tad bit slow and his positioning in question. A minute later, Espanyol would sent a volley from range to be again denied by Neto.
Valencia would respond in kind with a wonderful chance. Gaya found himself in a deep position in midfield and found Rodrigo who played a brilliant through ball for Santi Mina to the left of goal while the former made his way into the box in anticipation of a return ball. The return would come only for Rodrigo to fire straight at the keeper from point-blank range. Disappointing finish to a great move. Chances like that need to be taken.
Into the second half, 50 minutes into the game, a half-chance from a Diakhaby back-heel via a Parejo corner was cleared off the line by an Espanyol defender. The counter attack resulting for the clearance saved in turn by Neto.
Valencia would fall apart in the 60-70 minute time period. An Espanyol player moved out of the way of a teammate's shot only to expose Diakhaby to the shot. He parried the ball with his forearm and conceded a free-kick as a result. The kick was taken by Granero and was unstoppable to the right of Neto, off the cross bar and just in. Nothing that can be done to save that.
Marcelino would bring on Cheryshev for Wass and Gamerio for Santi Mina, who had faded from the game in the second half. Later, Piccini would get caught out of position having drifted towards the center by a long ball from the back from Espanyol, he would go to ground at the slightest contact with the attacker, only to get up again and the danger averted. A minute later, he would get caught the same way, out of position again, he would attempt a sloppy clearance only for Baptistao to get a free run on goal. Paulista and Diakhaby both frozen, one former claiming offside the other just static. The shot would be saved by Neto only for the Iglesias to capitalize on the sloppy defending and react first to bury the ball in the net. Atrocious defending by 3 of the four players.
Marcelino would attempt to change the game by using his final substitution, Batshuyai for Rodrigo but to no avail, the lead was too great and we didn't create very convincing chances.
GOALS
1-0 Granero (62')
2-0 Iglesias (68')
PLAYER RATINGS
Neto 8 - great job today. A quick reflex save in the first half, with a few other easier saves, could do nothing about the free kick and another great save to deny the first attempt from Baptistao only for the defense to let Iglesias have a free shot on goal for the second goal.
Piccini 1 - disaster all night and atypical of him, he can do much better. Lost possession way too many times on the way forward, got caught twice in the same fashion out of position, the first time he got away with it and was severely punished the second time only a few minutes later.
Diakhaby 3 - I'm on the fence about him. At times I see a quick yet strong defender who cleans up well with great tackling ability, at other times I see him get distracted and loses concentration as with the second goal leaving his man go free. Had a decent effort on goal with a back-heel.
Paulista 3 - The more experience of the two central defenders but got caught up claiming offside and let Iglesias go free. He probably expected Diakhaby to cover but I think he could've reacted quicker.
Gaya 6 - did well going forward, getting some dangerous crosses in, especially the one for Rodrigo but it couldn't be converted.
Kondogbia 7.5 - strong presence in midfield to make key interceptions and tackles. I still feel the attacking aspect of his game that we saw last season is missing.
Parejo 6 - decent performance, especially compared to his prior game where he was brilliant. The passing work was good, the defensive work ethic not so much.
Soler 4 - Second game in a row where he doesn't look too sharp. The passing was sloppy and the shots were just as bad. Might need some time on the bench to motivate him.
Wass 5 - balanced offensive and defensive display. Not as big a threat as he was last game but caused some trouble here and there.
Rodrigo 6 - when you get a chance that good from the Santi Mina pull back, you need to convert especially at that range and at this level. Caused plenty of trouble with his runs, passing and dribbles but nothing tangible to show for it.
Santi Mina 5 - very involved in the first half of the game and even set up a wonderful chance for Rodrigo, faded away in the second half.
Subs:
Cheryshev 5 - maybe should've been brought on earlier and for Soler rather than Wass.
Gamerio 5 - created 1 or 2 decent chances, but nothing to show for it
Batshuyai N/A
FINAL THOUGHTS
It's a shame we couldn't get the win. Away games are usually a struggle but the defending was the Achilles heel today. It was simply atrocious. Also, we are really lacking a player than can take on defenders and beat them or at least pull them away to create space for others. That's where Guedes fits in. However, having Guedes or someone similar won't fix the defensive problems. I expect to see Murillo in the next game after these two games of experimenting. This was the worst I have seen Piccini at, he seemed to have lost all focus, losing possession, caught out of position in quick succession and sloppy clearances and I saw Marcelino yell at him at least once. I have no doubt Marcelino will address this because it was clear for everyone to see the defense was terrible. On the other end of the field, Rodrigo was less clinical today and should've really scored that one chance. With all these mistakes, I don't think the claim for the penalty that I mentioned in the beginning would be a valid excuse or save the team from criticism.
Next week Sunday, is another away game and a derby at that, against Levante. We simply need a win. We need the confidence boost of having a first win in the season. Although Levante would be the least challenging opponent so far, on paper, we can't take any chances and it IS still a derby so it should motivate the players and a win would do well for the confidence.
Finally, the transfer window closing date and Champions League group stage draw are this week, Friday. So stay tuned for any new transfers as well as our group stage opponents.
As usual, let everyone know your ideas, thoughts and comments about the game in the comments below. Was the VAR correct to not give a penalty for Santi Mina's blocked effort? How should we lineup in defense? Who impressed? Who disappointed?
Sunday, August 26, 2018
Espanyol vs Valencia CF Match Preview
Valencia CF started off their season in the best possible way, a solid draw against one of the best Spanish teams in the past 5-6 years who just before the opening league match just crushed Real Madrid 4-2 in the Super Cup, while Valencia CF also lost both times it met Atletico Madrid last season, so this was a huge step forward.
Valencia CF will need to build upon that result though and make it count with a with tonight against Espanyol. The key to reaching top 4 position this season as well is beating the smaller teams consistently, we can't be losing easier points, because even if we do well against the better teams it won't count if we can't take points from the bottom table teams and struggle against them. Last year we managed to dispose of most of the weaker opponents and at some point we were even in contention for first place. So we need a repeat of the first half of last season.
This Valencia CF team has improved from last season, we brought in more defenders, we secured Kondogbia, kept all of the key players and brought in quite a few new players who add much needed quantity and of course quality to the team. Deals like Cheryshev, Michy, etc... were amazing deals and even though they are only loan deal, we have buy options on all of them if they prove their worth.
The biggest loss from last season is Goncalo Guedes, but he hasn't featured even one match so far for PSG, in fact he hasn't even been in the lineup for their matches so far. As far as I'm aware he is not injured, he is just not getting added to the lineup, so it's possible that we still might get him, because the situation is not worth it for PSG, not worth it for the player and if they keep on not playing him, heck even including him in their lineup, his value will fall significantly, so PSG will only lose out.
Anyways this is going to be an interesting match, I expect almost the same lineup as the previous match, with the only change being in the defense, as Garay is injured and out of the squad.
Valencia CF will need to build upon that result though and make it count with a with tonight against Espanyol. The key to reaching top 4 position this season as well is beating the smaller teams consistently, we can't be losing easier points, because even if we do well against the better teams it won't count if we can't take points from the bottom table teams and struggle against them. Last year we managed to dispose of most of the weaker opponents and at some point we were even in contention for first place. So we need a repeat of the first half of last season.
This Valencia CF team has improved from last season, we brought in more defenders, we secured Kondogbia, kept all of the key players and brought in quite a few new players who add much needed quantity and of course quality to the team. Deals like Cheryshev, Michy, etc... were amazing deals and even though they are only loan deal, we have buy options on all of them if they prove their worth.
The biggest loss from last season is Goncalo Guedes, but he hasn't featured even one match so far for PSG, in fact he hasn't even been in the lineup for their matches so far. As far as I'm aware he is not injured, he is just not getting added to the lineup, so it's possible that we still might get him, because the situation is not worth it for PSG, not worth it for the player and if they keep on not playing him, heck even including him in their lineup, his value will fall significantly, so PSG will only lose out.
Anyways this is going to be an interesting match, I expect almost the same lineup as the previous match, with the only change being in the defense, as Garay is injured and out of the squad.
Wednesday, August 22, 2018
News update
Firstly, a bit of news which passed us by last week. Valencia bought Jeison Murillo outright. We had until 30 June 2019 to exercise the compulsory buy under his loan deal. Murillo has always been well rated by fans but has found opportunities limited. He was out injured for 3 months last year and when he came back he was paired with Gabriel, as Garay was then injured. When the latter returned, Murillo was then dropped to the bench. It's pretty clear that Marcelino's preferred central defence duo is Garay and Gabriel and it now seems that Diakhaby may be the third choice as he was preferred for the Atletico game, with Murillo not even making the squad. So the timing of this one is a bit weird. But with extra games this season, hopefully Murillo will get his chance.
Superdeporte claim that Valencia are in negotiations to sign Lenny Pintor (Transfermarkt profile here) from France's second division. Pintor has just turned 18, plays as a left winger mainly but can also fit in on the right wing and as a secondary striker. This seems like another of Pablo Longoria's future investments and would be very much a depth/prospect type player along the lines of Uros Racic or Diakhaby. On the left wing, the Guedes saga drags on and for now it looks like no more than 50/50 that he'll join us. PSG are refusing to budge from their demand of 60-70m, a price beyond Valencia's means. A second loan seems out of the question. With the transfer window closing on 31 August, at least we'll know for sure soon. Alemany has said he is ready in case we don't get Guedes, so presumably we will have another left winger in mind apart from Pintor.
Similarly, despite continued links with Real Madrid, it looks unlikely that Rodrigo is going anywhere. While Lopetegui seems keen on bringing him, the Real Madrid fanbase and RM president seem unconvinced, especially since Alemany is insisting on the clause of 120m.
Rodrigo, along with Parejo, Gaya, Soler and Santi Mina is in Luis Enrique's preliminary list of 65 players for the forthcoming Nations League games. That list will be cut to 23, and Mina and Soler and probably Gaya at least would probably be among the players cut, but it's a sign that some of our talents are on the fringes and at least in the running.
Lastly, the final qualifying round of the Champions league is being played this week and next. This is the provisional situation
Valencia still need one of Benfica, Salzburg or PSV to be eliminated in order to make Pot 3 which would give us a better chance of an easier draw.. Last night's first leg results were:
BATE 2-3 PSV
RS Belgrade 0-0 RB Salzburg
Benfica 1-1 PAOK
PSV are strong favourites to go through and Salzburg in control, so our best chance seems to be PAOK beating Benfica. The draw for the group stage will take place next Thursday, 30 August. Time hasn't been confirmed but it's been at 18:00 Spanish time in previous years.
Superdeporte claim that Valencia are in negotiations to sign Lenny Pintor (Transfermarkt profile here) from France's second division. Pintor has just turned 18, plays as a left winger mainly but can also fit in on the right wing and as a secondary striker. This seems like another of Pablo Longoria's future investments and would be very much a depth/prospect type player along the lines of Uros Racic or Diakhaby. On the left wing, the Guedes saga drags on and for now it looks like no more than 50/50 that he'll join us. PSG are refusing to budge from their demand of 60-70m, a price beyond Valencia's means. A second loan seems out of the question. With the transfer window closing on 31 August, at least we'll know for sure soon. Alemany has said he is ready in case we don't get Guedes, so presumably we will have another left winger in mind apart from Pintor.
Similarly, despite continued links with Real Madrid, it looks unlikely that Rodrigo is going anywhere. While Lopetegui seems keen on bringing him, the Real Madrid fanbase and RM president seem unconvinced, especially since Alemany is insisting on the clause of 120m.
Rodrigo, along with Parejo, Gaya, Soler and Santi Mina is in Luis Enrique's preliminary list of 65 players for the forthcoming Nations League games. That list will be cut to 23, and Mina and Soler and probably Gaya at least would probably be among the players cut, but it's a sign that some of our talents are on the fringes and at least in the running.
Lastly, the final qualifying round of the Champions league is being played this week and next. This is the provisional situation
Valencia still need one of Benfica, Salzburg or PSV to be eliminated in order to make Pot 3 which would give us a better chance of an easier draw.. Last night's first leg results were:
BATE 2-3 PSV
RS Belgrade 0-0 RB Salzburg
Benfica 1-1 PAOK
PSV are strong favourites to go through and Salzburg in control, so our best chance seems to be PAOK beating Benfica. The draw for the group stage will take place next Thursday, 30 August. Time hasn't been confirmed but it's been at 18:00 Spanish time in previous years.
Tuesday, August 21, 2018
La Liga Matchday #1 | Valencia CF 1-1 Atlético Madrid | Match Report
The first game of the season was always going to be a challenging one. It's normally challenging to compete after a long break from a competitive fixtures. This game was made even more challenging by the level and quality of the opponent in such a fixture. We came to this game on the back of an impressive and definitive 3-0 victory at home against Bayer Leverkusen, as well as the obvious home advantage. Atletico came into the game with a 4-2 title win in the UEFA Super Cup against Real Madrid; which was a definite confidence boost and a good segway into competitive fixtures, while on the other hand, causing some fatigue.
LINEUP
LINEUP
Marcelino stayed loyal to his 4-4-2 formation and went for a familiar lineup with two notable differences, both new signings. Santi Mina and Rodrigo were chosen to start ahead of any new signings which is reasonable as he has had a lot more time to work with them. The left wing was the position which I was most looking forward to seeing who would be chosen to play in, with both Wass and Cheryshev available. Again, the one with the more time to work with was chosen. Kondogbia, Parejo and Soler, which were so instrumental last year, completed the midfield. In defence, Piccini was the new face of the right-back position, with Gaya, Paulista and Garay retaining their starting roles in front of Neto.
MATCH
The first half was a tight affair. Both sides took turns passing the ball around and possession was exchanged several times. Valencia had a few shots from distance from Wass 4 minutes in and from Rodrigo 12 minutes later. The efforts were pretty close enough to get a thought from Oblak but not on target.
Into the quarter of the game, where Valencia was looking like the slightly better team, Atletico would be the one to break the deadlock 25 minutes in. Three or four players were all drawn to Griezmann, leaving a gaping hole in the middle, which a player of his quality could pass the ball through and into Correa who beat Neto at his near post. Defence in shambles, Neto with an unconvincing dive.
Diego Costa was causing quite a few problems to Paulista and Gaya with quick changes in direction and his strength. Nearing the end of the first half, he would be played through into acres of space with only Garay remotely close to him. Garay opted to take him down, I feared a red card but thankfully the referee thought it only deserved a yellow.
Valencia would get back into the game 15 minutes into the second half. Kondogbia, who had been relatively quiet in the game in terms of daring passes and dribbles, played a long ball out wide to Daniel Wass, who squared it back across into the box where Rodrigo would take Godin out with a shoulder touch into space after which he smashed the ball into the roof of the net, with Oblak sent completely the wrong way. It was a brilliant move with a lot of vision and technique from Kondogbia and Wass, with Rodrigo showing awareness and great finishing.
With Mestalla now roaring the players into action, the players responded well. Paulista hit the post with a header following a set-piece from Parejo less than 10 minutes after the goal. At this point, Marcelino opted to take off Garay, who had been booked already, was involved in another foul that could've seen him sent off, and suffering from discomfort, for new signing Diakhaby. This would allow us to carry on forward confidently without the risk of injury or a sending off. Santi Mina was also taken off for Gameiro probably due to a fading presence in the game. A few minutes later, a third new signing in Batsuhayi to replace Soler.
The changes looked to further spark the team into motion, with Marcelino clearly intent on getting the win. However, it would be Atletico who would cause danger first following a corner kick which Savic connected with cleanly, only for him to put it to the left of Neto's goal.
The last ten minutes of the game was all Valencia. Batshuyai and Gamerio were causing trouble for the Atletico defense with their pace and movement. In a 3 on 2 break, Batshuyai would carry the ball forward well, draw the defenders, play a great ball for Wass who unfortunately could not beat Oblak from that angle. Missed chance to get a win.
Batshuyai would threaten again with an effort from range a few minutes earlier. Valencia would get one last great chance in the dying minutes of the game with Gameiro being played into space by Batshuyai again, only for Oblak to deny him a goal on his debut against his old team.
GOALS
0-1 A.Correa (25')
1-1 Rodrigo (55')
PLAYER RATINGS
Neto 6 - I think he could've done slightly better for the goal, but mostly the defense's fault. Pulled off a great save to deny Diego Costa by the smallest of margins.
Piccini 5 - decent game, would've liked him to get forward more since he poses a lot of threat from crosses. He was denied the time or space to do so.
Garay 4.5 - the booking was a tactical foul and needed to be made. He got away with only a yellow which was good, but proceeded to play with fire and could've got sent off.
Paulista 4 - very slow to react to in the first goal, leaving lots of space. Troubled by the opposing attack on plenty of occasions. Did good to get a dangerous header in from a Parejo corner. Maybe should've scored.
Gaya 7 - very active both defensively and offensively. Kept up well with the pace of the game and the Atletico players. Even late in the game was keeping up with Gelson Martins's pace and dribbling.
Kondogbia 6.5 - quiet in the first half and kept it simple. Stepped up a gear in the second half when it counted by picking out a wonderful long ball to Wass out wide.
Parejo 8 - I was really impressed with him today. He won the ball back quite cleanly with a couple of great sliding challenges. Carried the ball well, kept possession, passing was sharp, and almost assisted a Paulista goal via a corner.
Soler 6 - drew a foul from Felipe Luis to deal with his pace. His effort on goal was confident but a ways off. Could've looked up and picked out a pass to players in space instead.
Wass 7 - great debut. The work ethic was there, great vision to assist Rodrigo with a wonderful ball from out wide. He really needed to finish the one chance he had in the final minutes of the game, it would've topped off a great performance.
Rodrigo 7.5 - full of energy. Wanted a go at goal at every opportunity he could get. A few good efforts from range and some great dribbles caused some worry for Atletico. Great control and awareness to finish Wass's pass.
Santi Mina 4.5 - too quiet. At times I forgot he was even there. Got one header in but didn't trouble too much otherwise.
Subs:
Diakhaby 6 - covered well for Garay, was quick to clean up any trouble.
Gamerio 6 - professional against his old team, he went out to score and almost did.
Batshuyai 6.5 - generated three or four dangerous plays in the short time he was on the field, looks really promising.
FINAL THOUGHTS
This Atletico side is a tough one, they always give us plenty of trouble and tonight was no exception. They came off the back of a title win and pretty convincingly against Real Madrid. Beating them was always going to be a tough affair and I can confidently say that we should've won. We had the chances to do so, especially late in the second half. We had a tough opening fixture and a team that is still getting familiar with on another, whereas they are in the later stages of a long-term project. We did well minus the win, but against this side a draw is not a bad result either. The few next fixtures are relatively easier. Next Sunday, we are away to Espanyol and I believe we can manage a win.
As usual, let everyone know your ideas, thoughts and comments about the game in the comments below. Was Garay's challenge a yellow or red card? How did the new signings do? Who impressed? Who disappointed?
Monday, August 20, 2018
Valencia CF vs Atletico Madrid Match Preview
The new season is upon us ladies and gentlemen and I'm excited to see what Valencia CF can achieve this season. After last year's successful season, the expectations have grown and if it was a surprise to achieve 4th place last season, this one it is expected.
Valencia CF did do some good work in the transfer market and brought in several reinforcements, giving more options to the coach, though we did lose Goncalo Guedes(who can still come to VCF though), Andreas Pereira(who even though didn't celebrate himself with his performances, did help us out on few occasions and as a backup did very well).
So it's mostly the same look team with few new names and just in general more options, especially in attack as Valencia CF got Kevin Gameiro for 16 million euros, and Michy Batshuayi who came in on a loan deal with an option to purchase the player at the end of the season for about 35 million euros. Michy is a talented player who just didn't have many opportunities at Chelsea FC last season and maybe he can shine for us.
Our first opponent is Atletico Madrid, so a very tough opponent right off the gate for us and it will be very interesting to see how we fare and what our level is compared to last season. We lost both matches against Atletico Madrid last year, so essentially a draw or a win tonight will be progress from last season and it is going to establish us as a champions league contender once again right off the gate.
Valencia CF Squad:
GK: Neto, Jaume
Defense: Piccini, Garay, Gabriel Paulista, Diakhaby, Lato, Gaya
Midfield: Kondogbia, Parejo, Wass, Soler, Ferran Torres, Cheryshev
Attack: Rodrigo, Mina, Gameiro, Batshuayi
Valencia CF did do some good work in the transfer market and brought in several reinforcements, giving more options to the coach, though we did lose Goncalo Guedes(who can still come to VCF though), Andreas Pereira(who even though didn't celebrate himself with his performances, did help us out on few occasions and as a backup did very well).
So it's mostly the same look team with few new names and just in general more options, especially in attack as Valencia CF got Kevin Gameiro for 16 million euros, and Michy Batshuayi who came in on a loan deal with an option to purchase the player at the end of the season for about 35 million euros. Michy is a talented player who just didn't have many opportunities at Chelsea FC last season and maybe he can shine for us.
Our first opponent is Atletico Madrid, so a very tough opponent right off the gate for us and it will be very interesting to see how we fare and what our level is compared to last season. We lost both matches against Atletico Madrid last year, so essentially a draw or a win tonight will be progress from last season and it is going to establish us as a champions league contender once again right off the gate.
Valencia CF Squad:
GK: Neto, Jaume
Defense: Piccini, Garay, Gabriel Paulista, Diakhaby, Lato, Gaya
Midfield: Kondogbia, Parejo, Wass, Soler, Ferran Torres, Cheryshev
Attack: Rodrigo, Mina, Gameiro, Batshuayi
Friday, August 17, 2018
Simone Zaza to Torino FC
Well it seems neither of the linked clubs actually got Zaza, and in fact it is Torino FC who acquired the player on a one year loan deal with an option to purchase the player in the region of about 15 million euros.
Solid player and helped Valencia CF immensely last year, I think he and Rodrigo were the best attacking duo and their different styles contributed to making defenses fear them and have a hard time defending against both. Unfortunately Zaza is a passionate player and Marcelino couldn't handle his character, so even since last year after the winter transfer window he started getting less and less playing time, essentially ultimately coming mostly from the bench or once every three matches, not having any continuity in playing.
I wish Simone Zaza good luck in his new club and plenty of success, he deserves it.
Solid player and helped Valencia CF immensely last year, I think he and Rodrigo were the best attacking duo and their different styles contributed to making defenses fear them and have a hard time defending against both. Unfortunately Zaza is a passionate player and Marcelino couldn't handle his character, so even since last year after the winter transfer window he started getting less and less playing time, essentially ultimately coming mostly from the bench or once every three matches, not having any continuity in playing.
I wish Simone Zaza good luck in his new club and plenty of success, he deserves it.
Simone Zaza to leave Valencia CF
Simone Zaza is a goner and within 24 hours we will find out where his future lies. There are various reports coming from all over the media, and supposedly several clubs interested in acquiring the player, though it seems as Valencia CF hasn't deemed their offers worthy.
There have supposedly been offers for Simone Zaza from Nice, Marseille, and most recently Sampdoria. Seems like Sampdoria's offer is the best one for Valencia CF with a reported 15 million fee for the player in two installations.
The sale of Simone Zaza won't mean much for Valencia CF in terms of increased budget for transfers as it is going to go to fill the existing budget and replace money we've already spent on players, which truth be told is very little so far this season. Most of our new players have arrived on loan deals with purchase options for next year, though we have dished out some amount of money.
There have supposedly been offers for Simone Zaza from Nice, Marseille, and most recently Sampdoria. Seems like Sampdoria's offer is the best one for Valencia CF with a reported 15 million fee for the player in two installations.
The sale of Simone Zaza won't mean much for Valencia CF in terms of increased budget for transfers as it is going to go to fill the existing budget and replace money we've already spent on players, which truth be told is very little so far this season. Most of our new players have arrived on loan deals with purchase options for next year, though we have dished out some amount of money.
Tuesday, August 14, 2018
Denis Cheryshev rejoins Valencia
Valencia announced today that Denis Cheryshev will rejoin the club. It's a loan for this season and sources disagree on what will happen next summer, whether there's a buy option and whether it's compulsory or not.
The news came as a real surprise. All our previous signings had been linked well before, but this just dropped without warning. Just this morning the Valencian sports press were talking about Ivan Falque of Torino as a possible reinforcement on the left. Like the Gameiro signing this one will have its critics.
His previous loan with us at the start of 2016, during the ill-fated Gary Neville era shows the pros and cons. He played six games and did really well. He scored the late winner against Espanyol, ending a long winless run for us and scored a good equaliser against Atletico Madrid (though we went on to lose) with another winner and assist against Malaga. But he suffered a hamstring injury 6 weeks into his loan for us and a sub appearance against Villarreal would prove his last game, as he was operated on after that and Valencia didn't pursue his signing due to worries about his injuries.
Marcelino then took him to Villarreal where it's been a similar story. He missed 32 of 51 games in 2016/17 due to injury and 11 of 46 last year. His best moment came in the world cup: with 4 goals in 5 games he is widely agreed to be one of the best XI from that tournament.
So there's the issue. When he's fit, he's a great player with good pace, a good eye for goal and lots of experience in Spain, but he seems very injury-prone. However, this loan (signing?) seems to be in addition to Guedes rather than instead of him. It also reduces the pressure to secure a quick deal for Guedes. In the absolute worst case scenario and the Guedes deal falls through we have Cheryshev and Wass at least to cover the left wing. With Guedes, we'll have a decent and experienced alternative, so I'm mostly optimistic about this, especially since he's worked with Marcelino before.
What do you think? Good or could we have done better?
The news came as a real surprise. All our previous signings had been linked well before, but this just dropped without warning. Just this morning the Valencian sports press were talking about Ivan Falque of Torino as a possible reinforcement on the left. Like the Gameiro signing this one will have its critics.
His previous loan with us at the start of 2016, during the ill-fated Gary Neville era shows the pros and cons. He played six games and did really well. He scored the late winner against Espanyol, ending a long winless run for us and scored a good equaliser against Atletico Madrid (though we went on to lose) with another winner and assist against Malaga. But he suffered a hamstring injury 6 weeks into his loan for us and a sub appearance against Villarreal would prove his last game, as he was operated on after that and Valencia didn't pursue his signing due to worries about his injuries.
Marcelino then took him to Villarreal where it's been a similar story. He missed 32 of 51 games in 2016/17 due to injury and 11 of 46 last year. His best moment came in the world cup: with 4 goals in 5 games he is widely agreed to be one of the best XI from that tournament.
So there's the issue. When he's fit, he's a great player with good pace, a good eye for goal and lots of experience in Spain, but he seems very injury-prone. However, this loan (signing?) seems to be in addition to Guedes rather than instead of him. It also reduces the pressure to secure a quick deal for Guedes. In the absolute worst case scenario and the Guedes deal falls through we have Cheryshev and Wass at least to cover the left wing. With Guedes, we'll have a decent and experienced alternative, so I'm mostly optimistic about this, especially since he's worked with Marcelino before.
What do you think? Good or could we have done better?
Monday, August 13, 2018
Gameiro versus Zaza / Medrán leaves
Valencia officially announced yesterday that a deal had been reached with Atletico Madrid to bring in Kevin Gameiro, subject to a medical which should prove a formality. Sources report the fee as being 16 to 16.5 million euros, with another 2 possible. The signing, together with the arrival of Batshuayi, strongly seems to suggest that Simone Zaza will leave. The only thing that I could see halting that would be if Real Madrid bought Rodrigo, and they've shown no signs so far of meeting the asking price.
Of all the signings this summer, Gameiro is easily the most controversial, especially as it's understood he'll be replacing Zaza, a fan favourite. Gameiro's age, his price and his unspectacular stats have led to questions whether this is worth it, especially since it means we are helping out a direct rival by taking a discard off their books. So why ditch Zaza?
The first answer would be that the latter's stats are even worse than Gameiro's. His first half-season for us was unspectacular. Then he hit a real purple patch in September and October last year, but since then he's been failing to hit the target, notching up only 4 goals in his last 29 appearances. In contrast, Mina scored 12 playing significantly less time. Of course, stats aren't everything. Zaza does a lot more for the team in general with hold up play, work rate, hassling defenders and even tracking back to help the defence. But the fact remains, if he'd continued scoring at a reasonable rate, we wouldn't be discussing this.
The clearest answer to the question therefore seems to be Marcelino's methods. He's consistently made it clear that he wants a harmonious squad and players with egos like Alves, Negredo, Nani and Orellana or those who demand constant playing time (Ryan or Medrán) have been quickly shown the door. Zaza seems to fit into both those categories. He clashed several times with Marcelino and there were a couple of games where he seemed to be sulking and not giving it his all.
Ultimately I have mixed feelings on that one. I can see why Marcelino has chosen to move Zaza on, but I'll miss him and I'm not excited by the replacement, who will have little resale value. The other issue is that by bringing in Gameiro before Zaza leaves, we have reduced our bargaining power for the latter, as teams now know that we will need to sell him. We shall have to see how Gameiro does.
Mentioning Medrán, he has joined Rayo Vallecano on loan for the season. With the midfield well stacked, and Kangin Lee now on the fringes, his chances would have been very limited. My only issue is that we should have just moved Medrán on permanently. The Rayo deal doesn't include any buy option. I would have put a compulsory one in, of between a million or a million and a half, subject to Rayo staying up. As it is, he will come back next summer in the last year of his contract and we likely won't get anything for him.
Lastly, to update the situation from my previous post about the Champions league. We need one of PSV, Salzburg or Benfica to lose in qualifying to achieve pot 3. Benfica are playing this week in Turkey, defending a 1-0 lead against Fenerbahce. In money terms, we need Benfica and Dynamo Kyiv to lose in qualifying as we will get 1.1 million extra for each of those eliminated.
A week to go to the first game and with Guedes likely, we look to have a decent squad.
Of all the signings this summer, Gameiro is easily the most controversial, especially as it's understood he'll be replacing Zaza, a fan favourite. Gameiro's age, his price and his unspectacular stats have led to questions whether this is worth it, especially since it means we are helping out a direct rival by taking a discard off their books. So why ditch Zaza?
The first answer would be that the latter's stats are even worse than Gameiro's. His first half-season for us was unspectacular. Then he hit a real purple patch in September and October last year, but since then he's been failing to hit the target, notching up only 4 goals in his last 29 appearances. In contrast, Mina scored 12 playing significantly less time. Of course, stats aren't everything. Zaza does a lot more for the team in general with hold up play, work rate, hassling defenders and even tracking back to help the defence. But the fact remains, if he'd continued scoring at a reasonable rate, we wouldn't be discussing this.
The clearest answer to the question therefore seems to be Marcelino's methods. He's consistently made it clear that he wants a harmonious squad and players with egos like Alves, Negredo, Nani and Orellana or those who demand constant playing time (Ryan or Medrán) have been quickly shown the door. Zaza seems to fit into both those categories. He clashed several times with Marcelino and there were a couple of games where he seemed to be sulking and not giving it his all.
Ultimately I have mixed feelings on that one. I can see why Marcelino has chosen to move Zaza on, but I'll miss him and I'm not excited by the replacement, who will have little resale value. The other issue is that by bringing in Gameiro before Zaza leaves, we have reduced our bargaining power for the latter, as teams now know that we will need to sell him. We shall have to see how Gameiro does.
Mentioning Medrán, he has joined Rayo Vallecano on loan for the season. With the midfield well stacked, and Kangin Lee now on the fringes, his chances would have been very limited. My only issue is that we should have just moved Medrán on permanently. The Rayo deal doesn't include any buy option. I would have put a compulsory one in, of between a million or a million and a half, subject to Rayo staying up. As it is, he will come back next summer in the last year of his contract and we likely won't get anything for him.
Lastly, to update the situation from my previous post about the Champions league. We need one of PSV, Salzburg or Benfica to lose in qualifying to achieve pot 3. Benfica are playing this week in Turkey, defending a 1-0 lead against Fenerbahce. In money terms, we need Benfica and Dynamo Kyiv to lose in qualifying as we will get 1.1 million extra for each of those eliminated.
A week to go to the first game and with Guedes likely, we look to have a decent squad.
Sunday, August 12, 2018
Valencia CF 3-0 Bayer Leverkusen
Valencia CF won the orange trophy by outclassing German Bundesliga team Bayer Leverkusen. This was Valencia's first home match in the preseason and it was the final test before the kickoff of the new season. Valencia CF has been improving in their play over the last 3 preseason friendlies and it culminated in this victory over Bayern Leverkusen.
Valencia CF started the match in high tempo and was able to pressure Bayern from the start, having few shots on goal early on. In the 10th minute Rodrigo found himself in a perfect opportunity to score the first goal of the match, but unfortunately his close range shot went wide. He would need to improve his shooting accuracy if he is to score as many goals as last season and stay as the first choice striker, especially after Valencia CF got Michy Batshuayi on loan deal from Chelsea FC with an option to purchase the player at the end of the season.
The first goal came in the 29th minuta when Santi Mina scored after a bit of chaos in Bayer's penalty area on an assist from Garay. Valencia CF had few chances after this as well, including a dangerous Santi Mina shot, but he also missed from a good position.
Fortunately the misses won't last long and it was Santi Mina who stole the ball from Bayer Leverkusen, released Rodrigo who calmly slotted the ball past Bayer's keeper and into the net.
The second half was a different affair, with Bayer Leverkusen coming out stronger and determined to get something out of the match, but Valencia CF managed to withstand their initial pressure and normalize the match. Both teams had few decent chances, but ultimately between all the changes and stops the the game, it was a much more uneventful half.
Valencia CF would ultimately make the game 3-0 with a goal by Mestalla youngster Kangin Lee.
What do you guys think of this performance and what are your predictions for next season?
Valencia CF started the match in high tempo and was able to pressure Bayern from the start, having few shots on goal early on. In the 10th minute Rodrigo found himself in a perfect opportunity to score the first goal of the match, but unfortunately his close range shot went wide. He would need to improve his shooting accuracy if he is to score as many goals as last season and stay as the first choice striker, especially after Valencia CF got Michy Batshuayi on loan deal from Chelsea FC with an option to purchase the player at the end of the season.
The first goal came in the 29th minuta when Santi Mina scored after a bit of chaos in Bayer's penalty area on an assist from Garay. Valencia CF had few chances after this as well, including a dangerous Santi Mina shot, but he also missed from a good position.
Fortunately the misses won't last long and it was Santi Mina who stole the ball from Bayer Leverkusen, released Rodrigo who calmly slotted the ball past Bayer's keeper and into the net.
The second half was a different affair, with Bayer Leverkusen coming out stronger and determined to get something out of the match, but Valencia CF managed to withstand their initial pressure and normalize the match. Both teams had few decent chances, but ultimately between all the changes and stops the the game, it was a much more uneventful half.
Valencia CF would ultimately make the game 3-0 with a goal by Mestalla youngster Kangin Lee.
What do you guys think of this performance and what are your predictions for next season?
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