rafa deserves some props for proving me right, that if players don't go out of their way to spoon feed cr, his finishing isn't breathe taking but rather average like i have always said, and that benzema can be a goal scorer if you let him, instead of sending him out to massage the ego, the power of tactics .

anyway hopefully zidane can sort out the shape and workrate issues, that should be enough until the end of the season.

I wonder what our line up will be for this Saturday. Not sure if they're fit but can we expect Carvajal + Varane back in the starting lineup.

i don't like the zidane-pep talk/comparisons. zidane is here, it is what it is, we understand it, let him work. he's got a hell lot more  of a bigger challenge on his hand than pep did when he took over barcelona. i'm not going to dig deeper into that, cos people get overly sensitive; but futbol, who's a barcelona fan has pretty much discussed it in detail (simeone had a crazy challenge on his hand with atleti, and that has impressed me more than anyone else. but gets very little props for whatever reason)

anyway, i really want to see how zidane runs our midfield. i know he can't bestow the talents he had on anyone, but since that was his area of expertise, maybe he'll have some ideas from a creative standpoint, as well as defensively; his france 98 team was well organized, but yeah coaching is a whole different game

i wonder what will happen to odegaard? lol wasn't the kid training with the first team? now he'll meet zidane again. btw that idea of playing for castilla and training with the first team is one of the most foolish ideas we've executed at real madrid. how can someone play for a team and not routinely train with them, its ludicrous, sends the wrong message, and doesn't help his development at all, especially on being a team player and understanding the strengths and weaknesses of your teammates....i don't blame zidane for not liking that situation, hope he does something about it

titosantill wrote: but futbol, who's a barcelona fan

Just to be clear, That is futbol Junior he is referring to!!!!!

I think Odegaard will be loaned out - likely next season. He is no where close to be ready for big club, hasn't looked good at all at Castilla, always seems to be complaining (he's having a hard time -boy playing against men, doesn't like some of the fields they play on, has several flaws in his game esp. defensively and it doesn't seem as if he has fit in with his fellow players. The best situation for this is let him go were he (or his father) wants and if he does work out, then consider bringing him back in a couple of years, but otherwise sell him.

i'd say loan him back to his former club, if he is better in a couple years time, maybe, a big maybe, cos there are always new toys for florentino....selling a 16 yr old sounds ruthless, lol, but hey its madrid, we're trying to win, not babysit. he should have signed a youth deal to begin with

the 2006 France midfield was more impressive than any of the others (Vieira-Makelele-Zidane). The 2008 team had probably the best defensive 4 i have ever seen (Thuram-Blanc-Dessailly-Lizerazu)... nobody could score on that team in competition.

Too bad Vieira got hurt after the Brazil quarters in 2006... Still almost won it if not for Zidane losing his cool.

FalcaoPunch wrote:I wonder what our line up will be for this Saturday. Not sure if they're fit but can we expect Carvajal + Varane back in the starting lineup.

They are both fit and have been for the past two weeks.

I'm very, very excited about the lineup. I think I'm going to break my personal record of number of refresh clicks in the minute preceding the lineup announcement on Saturday.

Obviously, Zidane can't implement his ideas in such a short period of time come Saturday. However, there are some things he can do right away:

1. I don't want to see Danilo.
2. I don't want to see Danilo.
3. I don't want to see Danilo.
4. I don't want to see Pepe.
5. I don't want to see James at LCM.
6. I want Zidane to use Kroos like Carlo did.
7. I want 5-0-5 wiped out.
8. I want to see a hardworking BBC (pressing + tracking back).
9. I don't want to see some players killing themselves while others are taking a walk.
10. Did I mention that I don't want to see Danilo?

I still can't believe that a scrub like danilo is playing for us

The best way to lose a squad is to make changes if they don't earn it on the practice pitch... whoever wants to start needs to be better than the person in front of them during practice. The only other way is if the starters play badly.

I think that, for purposes of selling a selection process to the squad, Zidane may let the normal starters give it a go this first game. If they step up, good for us. If they don't, the process that led to them being benched is rational and accepted by the squad.

Worst thing you can do as a new manager is to make your decisions seem unilateral... that's if you want to build a team based on mutual trust. You can be a dictator too... but that has a very limited shelf life.

We are just the most unnecessarily complicated team in world football.
Carlo Ancelotti had found it. Carvajal, varane, ramos marcelo
kross modric james (RM) isco (LM) ronaldo/bale and benzema
Just let one of this big heads go and we win trophies.
Its that simple! arghh
@ The Demon of Carthage
I dont see Zidane benching Danilo immediately. It seems like there is an instruction to play that guy always. I cant imagine how a player that sucks as bad as that keeps playing regularly and benching a player who is light years ahead of him.
Even if Zidane manages to find that balance in the team, expect that stupid perez to go out there to buy another galactico that will threaten the balance of the team.

i'm not sure i'd say carlo had found it. we sat at home and watched our rivals pick 3 titles. what carlo found or created however was a peaceful locker room, and florentino had a chance to really make the players feel responsible and maybe win...hypothetical scenario- imagine when rumors of us sacking ancelotti surfaced (as we all know, players like ramos and cristiano publicly called for the club not to sack him), and in that same time frame rumors that rafa would take over surfaced. only for florentino to pull the plug and keep ancelotti on. that may have just been the right battery to get the players charged up for the upcoming season, not only to battle for their coach, but avoid a change they may not like

but who knows? on the flip side, if you watch your rivals win a treble and yet another league and ucl title in recent time, and you're still not inspired to go out there and give your best, then maybe nothing besides the money and fame associated with the sport motivates you. isn't carvajal injured? i don't think danilo starts cos of orders from above (florentino doesn't give a crap about who starts in defense lol). last i remember, carvajal was injured, returned, and got injured again

shadexticos wrote:We are just the most unnecessarily complicated team in world football.
Carlo Ancelotti had found it. Carvajal, varane, ramos marcelo
kross modric james (RM) isco (LM) ronaldo/bale and benzema
Just let one of this big heads go and we win trophies.
Its that simple! arghh
@ The Demon of Carthage
I dont see Zidane benching Danilo immediately. It seems like there is an instruction to play that guy always. I cant imagine how a player that sucks as bad as that keeps playing regularly and benching a player who is light years ahead of him.
Even if Zidane manages to find that balance in the team, expect that stupid perez to go out there to buy another galactico that will threaten the balance of the team.

Carlo found nothing, we lost all the trophies, got humilliated by Atletico (4-0), although i would have kept him one more year, providing him with all the player he would have wanted, i believe he didn't rotate enough because he didn't like the bench players he had.

http://www.lequipe.fr/Football/Actualites/Zidane-je-veux-en-profiter/623056

"What is your assessment of this first game and first win?

When we win, we can only be satisfied. I'm happy with this first game, my first four days of training, and here we are. What I liked most is the attitude of the players. It is not easy to win 5-0 against a team like La Coruña.

What emotions you felt for your debut?

I am happy. For me, today is another challenge. This is something important to coach here and I want to enjoy it. The day was a bit long, but I'm happy with how it went, and necessarily also happy for the win. I tried to be calm. The first game went well and we need to continue. This is only the beginning and we will have to improve in many things, as always. (...) What we do best is handle the ball and finish well the actions, by creating opportunities. However, we can improve with the recovery of the ball, but we must take things slowly. I just arrived and it takes time.

How do you rate the performance of Gareth Bale, author of a hat-trick? And that of Cristiano Ronaldo, who did not score?

To answer in order, Gareth must do the same as the others:  When we do not have the ball, he must defend, and then when we have it, he must go wide and play on the wing. I'm happy with his game. It's not easy to score three goals. He has to continue like that. As for Cristiano, I found he was good. He wants to always score, that's what he likes, but I found that he felt fine and was as happy as everyone else. We must think above all to about winning and so does he. We will soon have another match to play where he can score. "

sportsczy wrote:http://www.lequipe.fr/Football/Actualites/Zidane-je-veux-en-profiter/623056

"What is your assessment of this first game and first win?

When we win, we can only be satisfied. I'm happy with this first game, my first four days of training, and here we are. What I liked most is the attitude of the players. It is not easy to win 5-0 against a team like La Coruña.

What emotions you felt for your debut?

I am happy. For me, today is another challenge. This is something important to coach here and I want to enjoy it. The day was a bit long, but I'm happy with how it went, and necessarily also happy for the win. I tried to be calm. The first game went well and we need to continue. This is only the beginning and we will have to improve in many things, as always. (...) What we do best is handle the ball and finish well the actions, by creating opportunities. However, we can improve with the recovery of the ball, but we must take things slowly. I just arrived and it takes time.

How do you rate the performance of Gareth Bale, author of a hat-trick? And that of Cristiano Ronaldo, who did not score?

To answer in order, Gareth must do the same as the others:  When we do not have the ball, he must defend, and then when we have it, he must go wide and play on the wing. I'm happy with his game. It's not easy to score three goals. He has to continue like that. As for Cristiano, I found he was good. He wants to always score, that's what he likes, but I found that he felt fine and was as happy as everyone else. We must think above all to about winning and so does he. We will soon have another match to play where he can score. "

I very much like the serene and sensible personality that Zizou seems to transmit. If he can translate that into how he develops the team, strategies, and player management then he could be very successful.

I also find that what he says seems to have substance and a nice layer of sensible reasoning behind it. He's answered questions about the BBC in smart ways that may be described as cool and measured and actually answers football related questions in concise and reasonable ways.

"When we do not have the ball, he must defend, and then when we have it, he must go wide and play on the wing."

"The first game went well and we need to continue. This is only the beginning and we will have to improve in many things, as always."

"However, we can improve with the recovery of the ball, but we must take things slowly. I just arrived and it takes time."

He's even answered questions related to Domenech and Benitez in really short but measured and reasonable ways that say plenty in a few words and with a healthy and reasonable vibe behind it all.

His refreshing presence brings soothing, calming winds of Ancelotti to me, and i really enjoy that.

Here's a little quote from the interview of Carlo with Chinese broadcaster Sina Sports:

"Zidane will be the fifth manager at Real Madrid since 2009. Is it always the fault of the coach? People can draw their own conclusions.

When a guy as classy and silent as Carlo goes as far as to say this, you know you have a problem.

the only problem all managers had to face, is trying to balancing winning with cr ruin everything, and can't sub or bench him.

sportsczy wrote:http://www.lequipe.fr/Football/Actualites/Zidane-je-veux-en-profiter/623056

"What is your assessment of this first game and first win?

When we win, we can only be satisfied. I'm happy with this first game, my first four days of training, and here we are. What I liked most is the attitude of the players. It is not easy to win 5-0 against a team like La Coruña.

What emotions you felt for your debut?

I am happy. For me, today is another challenge. This is something important to coach here and I want to enjoy it. The day was a bit long, but I'm happy with how it went, and necessarily also happy for the win. I tried to be calm. The first game went well and we need to continue. This is only the beginning and we will have to improve in many things, as always. (...) What we do best is handle the ball and finish well the actions, by creating opportunities. However, we can improve with the recovery of the ball, but we must take things slowly. I just arrived and it takes time.

How do you rate the performance of Gareth Bale, author of a hat-trick? And that of Cristiano Ronaldo, who did not score?

To answer in order, Gareth must do the same as the others:  When we do not have the ball, he must defend, and then when we have it, he must go wide and play on the wing. I'm happy with his game. It's not easy to score three goals. He has to continue like that. As for Cristiano, I found he was good. He wants to always score, that's what he likes, but I found that he felt fine and was as happy as everyone else. We must think above all to about winning and so does he. We will soon have another match to play where he can score. "

CR is a disgrace with his scoring obsession.The scoring obsession has almost ruined him as a player and will be the end of him as a top player.

I dont know what Zidane is saying here about Bale. He says when he have the ball Bale has to go wide to the wing. Is he implying that Bale should not crash the box and score goals like last match?

chad4401 wrote:the only problem all managers had to face, is trying to balancing winning with cr ruin everything, and can't sub or bench him.

Sure, you can blame it on Ronaldo, and you're partly right. But you'd be sadly mistaken if you thought our problems will go away once he gets sold. It's the root that's rotten, not just the branch.

Adit wrote: CR is a disgrace with his scoring obsession.The scoring obsession has almost ruined him as a player and will be the end of him as a top player.

I remember last night Benzema and Bale were better positioned than him on a couple occasions, but he chose to shoot instead of passing it. It went unnoticed last night because everybody was happy the team was playing well. But imagine if we were one goal down against a tougher opponent where you can only create a couple clear-cut chances in the entire game, and we were desperately trying to equalize. Having him in the team would greatly jeopardize our chance of getting back. It's a shame that he puts himself and his personal glory over the team and pretty much anything else.

Maybe I was misunderstood. Personally, I'll forever be grateful for what he's done for Real Madrid. I think he's already a legend and has done enough to get the respect he deserves.

My problem with him hovers mainly over his selfishness. When there's an unmarked teammate open and has more chance than you to score, pass it them, don't go for glory.

I think he no longer is the player he once was. But even now, he can still be very useful to us. Like, his crosses, they are deadly accurate. His shots are scary powerful. His quickness in picking the better teammate to pass the ball to is insane. His heading, his finishing, his positioning. I could go on and on...

Ronaldo is Ronaldo, one of the two best players of his generation. I just have one problem with him and that's selfishness. If he could just tone it down, I'd be completely satisfied with him.

im not buying that carth, cr is the only player on the team that demands, to play every game full 90 mins, take all the shots he wants, walking around whole game if he wants too, he was never a leader of men, and always played for himself, yet because of marketing the team has to play for him.

yesterday was a vintage cr game, don't care what the team is trying to do or achieve, just kicking the ball away without a care, under mou we played a lot of pass the ball to cr, lesser extent under carlo but not by much, the only way those managers won anything, sure has hell had nothing to do with cr, but other players like bale/benzema/di maria,etc stepping up, out performing him easily in almost every big game, yet 9/10 posters act like cr was the reason cause he is the most hyped player on the team, can't wait until he leaves such a pos.

who get salty for their teammates scoring more than cr? yet he isn't the main reason why we can't win? he so didn't want benzema to score a brace yesterday and its was obvious, cr is the type of guy who wants his teammates to act beneath him, the moment rafa broke that up he looks like he is decline, when its clearly them easy tap-ins is what he is missing.

if he doesn't score he is irrelevant.

He is not useful at all, he stops us from functioning as a team.

Most teams at elite level play with 11 guys at the time, organized in attack and in defense. Positioning matters, occupation of the pitch matters, one guy out of sync can screw the whole team and create gaps that should not happen.

That is what Ronaldo brings to Real Madrid now, imbalance. We win most games due to the ridiculous amount of talent we have then we hit those key games vs europe best and it doesnt work as well.

It doesnt matter how good he is, this is not tennis, he cant win alone and if he is not working to help the team, neither can they.

It's a fantasy to think he will adjust lol, he will adjust nothing, if we can sell him we need to jump on the chance. Got to stop sabotaging ever manager we hire.

To be fair I would even play Lucas Vasquez ahead of Ronaldo let alone Hazard. He is having negetive impact on the team clearly. Even yesterday, look at all those crosses coming from Marcelo's side, it was their FB crossing. Nothing midfielders and Marcelo can do... The midfielders covering the wings are just plain wrong tactics. There is a video of Ramos asking Ronaldo to help the team tracking back and he says he can't.

Zidane has the right intentions. Possession football, Play the ball out of back at every cost, defend as a team, stay in shape.

Only CR was so out of sync with the team. 10 shots my goodness. Then countless turnovers that started bunch of counters. His every other pass is getting intercepted with ease nowadays. I am praying every day for PSG to come and take him. James instead of CR would make our game allot better.