Copa America: Milan Stars' Performances

Robinho wasn't crap at all... he was more of a threat then Neymar or Ganso. Plus he was important for build-up play. Notice how Brazil couldn't even string together an attack after he left the field. Elano was nowhere to be found.

ugh i dont know,i just want to get the torunament going,i guess it was the first match jinx

As far as Ganso is concerned, don't judge him by this game alone, you can't judge a player by one game. I haven't seen him play live before, but from watching YouTube the guy looks promising and also just won the Copa Libetadores with Santos. Give him a chance, if you had seen Messi play for Argentina the other day for the first time, you wouldn't know what all the hype was about as well. As for Fred, I can't believe he came on, the guy sucks, how he was chosen ahead of Hulk, Nilmar and L.Adriano(Shaktar) is beyond me. Marcelo would have added much needed attack from the left to help Neymar as well. I really hope that both Argentina and Brazil play like they usually do, they need to...As far as I'm concerned and with all due respect, Venezuela and Bolivia are the two weakest teams in the competition.

Either you guys have forgotten about Ganso's recent history or you are just ignoring facts.

It took Gattuso two years to recover from his dirty ACL tear, Ganso has played only one game in the last two months or so, what do you expect? WHAT IN HELL DO YOU EXPECT?

He was obviously unfit tonight, as he will be for the rest of Copa America, but game by game, even if only a little bit, he will get better, he will get sharper, he will get FITTER.


As soon as Ganso hits his top form, you'll see.

Question: Kaka has played too substandard and not very often for Real Madrid, is he "crap", or "worthless"? No, he's simply unlucky, like Ganso.

Believe me or not, fitness determines at least 50% of quality of a player. Might sound funny, but sometimes a 100% Flamini can do better than a 50& Zidane. Just saying.


And one more thing:

Call me plain stupid or delusional if you will, but I can bet my life Argentina and Brazil didn't win so as to take advantage of this sick betting system that is in circulation nowadays.

Barcelona lost to Rubin Kazan in 2009 because the odds were insanely in their favor, Spain lost their opening game in WC 2010 and now we are witnessing weird performances from the two SA giants.

A friend of mine who's put his life into bwin, told me the number of apparently-surprising losses by favorites are increasing by each passing day, with unbelievably high rate.


Suit yourself, I just had to share this.

I do understand Binho being subbed it has nothing t do with his performance he was doing great, but Brazil needed to stop playing wide and focus from the mid so the needed Fred. (Thats what I thought) till I saw Pato leaving.

As for Ganso, as I previously said this was the first game I ever see him in, but from what I noticed he prefers playing direct through passes to the middle, he wasnt good when the team was playing a wide pitch, and slightly improved when he got more of the ball and had more options through Vezu. mid. I might be mistaken.

OH FFS we can criticize Ganso all we want!!!! Fact is he sucked today. No one is saying forget about Ganso after one game. If you watched the game and happened to notice how poorly he was playing you would say the same thing. WHAT THE HELL DO YOU EXPECT FROM US?

At least Thiago did his job today
0 shots on target?
Remember those stats boys? Napoli and Juve?
They were great days

It's the first flamin' match anyway, to make judgements from this game alone is just stupid
We all know Ganso has got the talent and potential
So whats with all talking down? Everyone has their off days

Oh I assumed that a thread where we can discuss players performances meant that if they played badly we can criticize them, but now I know only to comment if they're playing well.

No one is saying Ganso is a miserable player but there are certain attributes you need to make it at a big club and I'm just stating that Ganso was poor today, and being able to find the correct spaces in a game are very important and his injury didn't affect him mentally. Playing on a national level is a true test for a player and tactically things change.

Dont shoot me for saying this but i must. Pato was terrible today. He had that crossbar but besides that almost every ball he didn't manage to put in control. And some of you even said he was good. No, he was not. Anyway, it look like it's only my opinion.

i think mano failed this match... the tactical set-up was quite horrible. they did have lots of time on the ball, but they played with no structure plus some poor individual performances...
i didnt like ganso at all... he needs to get himself involved a lot more. he wasnt given the no. 10 for no reason...
robinho was very active as usual but his passing and touch of the ball did let him down....
pato did reasonably well... was probably the best on the pitch along with ramires
t.silva was hardly tested... he did get a surprising yellow card though... cant remember the last time he received a card...

Pato isnt really a Ronaldo ,he shouldnt play in that position his Speed and Tech goes to waste!Ganso looked lost and scared ,it might change but its such a huge risk purchasing him now with that price tag!Robinho did good but omg hes a crappy finisher and it concerns me very much!

celikmilan wrote:Dont shoot me for saying this but i must. Pato was terrible today. He had that crossbar but besides that almost every ball he didn't manage to put in control. And some of you even said he was good. No, he was not. Anyway, it look like it's only my opinion.

I don't believe it was Pato's fault. He wasn't utilized correctly... but he was far better than his teammates. Ganso was terrible... Neymar selfish...

All they need to do is get the players working better as a team!

And everyone can put all the sugarcoating that they want around Ganso's awful performance today. I'm sorry but he just looked totally lost... he could have made himself more useful. He should have been subbed off regardless.

Seriously, i like the ''new'' pato a lot more than the player he was before. his playing style changed considerably... he rarely dribbles at defenders anymore, hes doesnt demand the ball like he used to, he doesnt try to make difficult passes, hes does a lot more off-the-ball movements, hes pressing defenders, hes helping defensively when necessary... overall hes becoming more of a team player.

i like the progress hes done since his arrival in milan and im sure hes on his way to become a great #9

Don't see the point of defending Ganso, he looked lost in that match.

He deserved to be criticised as he brought nothing to the match. If this guy isn't fully fit then he should never have been selected.

let's hope that he can turn it a round in the next game, because if he has a bad tournament, it's not going to do his reputation any good.

Ganso was awful last night but i think he'd come good in the next games

pato was quite good despite little service

neymar was nothing special tbh

robinho was his usual milan self, with a lot of hustle

How Lucas Lieva ever steps foot on a professional field is beyond me, how is he starting for Brazil? I'd take that clown Melo over him right now

Very disappointed. All show, no product. We really need to improve in the final third and I'm sure people will start to say Neymar and Ganso are overrated by one match. We dominated the first half, played some nice football, Pato hit the bar and a shoulder stopped Robinho from scoring but we were really disappointing in the second half. Hulk, Nilmar, Hernanes and Fernando should have been called up for alternatives to Elvis Presley, Pato, Ganso and Ramires respectively. Hope we improve in the coming games.

And this is Ganso's second game back from injury, I hope people do not judge him by this game and say he's overrated. Neymar was a joy to watch and frustrating at the same time, Pato's first touch was gold and he should not have been subbed of and Robinho was Robinho.

PS: Robinho looks so damn funny with his Elvis hairstyle. I hope Neymar goes back to his old hairstyle and Dani Alves looks even more annoying.

SO do you think that Ganso should been selected if he's not fully fit?

Maybe an introduction in the last twenty minutes migh have helped him to ease back into the game?

He was poor regardless of the fitness etc, and wheter it was the coach bowing to pressure from fans i don't know, but i do know i would have taken him off at around the 60th minute.

elmickio wrote:SO do you think that Ganso should been selected if he's not fully fit?

Maybe an introduction in the last twenty minutes migh have helped him to ease back into the game?

He was poor regardless of the fitness etc, and wheter it was the coach bowing to pressure from fans i don't know, but i do know i would have taken him off at around the 60th minute.

The problem is Ganso is our only playmaker at the team. That's why I think Mano made a huge mistake in not calling up Hernanes and Kaka.

IzzyC08 wrote:Oh I assumed that a thread where we can discuss players performances meant that if they played badly we can criticize them, but now I know only to comment if they're playing well.

No one is saying Ganso is a miserable player but there are certain attributes you need to make it at a big club and I'm just stating that Ganso was poor today, and being able to find the correct spaces in a game are very important and his injury didn't affect him mentally. Playing on a national level is a true test for a player and tactically things change.

Well, I don't regret and/or take back what I said, but I think the all-capital font and the way I attacked Ganso's critics at the beginning of my post offended Izzy.

Please don't take any, because none was intended.

Hey, funny you should say that red line!

So, who was the best player in the world again? Messi, eh?

Has he ever been [consistently] 70% of the player that runs over i.e. chews Barcelona's oppositions week-in-week-out?

No, I don't think so. And accordingly, I believe a player can't necessarily be as good for his country as he is for his club.


Also, MTD says with this game in mind, he better not enter Milanello.

Let's look at it from another perspective: We are all aware of his fantastic qualities, don't you think we can take advantage of his last game in addition to the next potentially weak performances he will give in Copa America 2011?

I'm cocksure Galliani was dancing his ass off after watching Ganso's subdued, quiet display, he must have been like, "Here goes another nice $3m off the boy's heavy price...Heeheeheeheehee!"


Criticize the guy all you want, but I, for one, only judge a player when he's at the peak of his powers.

Milantildeath wrote:How Lucas Lieva ever steps foot on a professional field is beyond me, how is he starting for Brazil? I'd take that clown Melo over him right now

Lucas was excellent, he was our best player. He has really improved. From being booed by his own fans to Liverpool Player Of The Season. I rated him highly since his Sao Paulo days, now he is shining under a proper manager in Dalglish after the abominations that were Benitez and Hodgson.

Brazil have more than enough talent to cope without a "playmaker"

Robinho, Neymar are not exact number 10s but they can set up enough they could have played another man in midfield like elano or Jadson?

Ganso will get his shit back together

Are you from Brazil Milanista99?

IrasMaldinista wrote:

IzzyC08 wrote:Oh I assumed that a thread where we can discuss players performances meant that if they played badly we can criticize them, but now I know only to comment if they're playing well.

No one is saying Ganso is a miserable player but there are certain attributes you need to make it at a big club and I'm just stating that Ganso was poor today, and being able to find the correct spaces in a game are very important and his injury didn't affect him mentally. Playing on a national level is a true test for a player and tactically things change.

Well, I don't regret and/or take back what I said, but I think the all-capital font and the way I attacked Ganso's critics at the beginning of my post offended Izzy.

Please don't take any, because none was intended.

Hey, funny you should say that red line!

So, who was the best player in the world again? Messi, eh?

Has he ever been [consistently] 70% of the player that runs over i.e. chews Barcelona's oppositions week-in-week-out?

No, I don't think so. And accordingly, I believe a player can't necessarily be as good for his country as he is for his club.


Also, MTD says with this game in mind, he better not enter Milanello.

Let's look at it from another perspective: We are all aware of his fantastic qualities, don't you think we can take advantage of his last game in addition to the next potentially weak performances he will give in Copa America 2011?

I'm cocksure Galliani was dancing his ass off after watching Ganso's subdued, quiet display, he must have been like, "Here goes another nice $3m off the boy's heavy price...Heeheeheeheehee!"


Criticize the guy all you want, but I, for one, only judge a player when he's at the peak of his powers.

The difference in playing for Santos and Brazil is vast. If you think that he has had to play that level for club you're mistaken IMO. Sure he wasn't playing at the peak of his ability physically but if you understand what I meant I'm talking about his positioning, and his ability to adjust to the game, which unfortunately he didn't adjust. He's young and no one is trying to make Ganso look terrible but if you only judge a player at the peak of his powers....well I don't personally think that's good enough. A player must be judged in all circumstances and how he deals with all situations not just when they are perfect for him. Sorry you have your opinion and I have mine. Ganso needs a better understanding of the game tactically in tough situations and on a national level it is a true test, tactics become a major issue, and Ganso didn't show anything positive.

the whole brazil team sucked yesterday, propably silva & lucio were the best of the bunch, ganso was the worst, terrible terrible performance really, pato didn't play well, neymar was slightly better and robinho was just poor...


anyway to pato's defence i think it wasn't his fault, he was played out of position, he's not a classical number 9 aka ronaldo, sheva etc. he's at his best as second striker given space and freedom to roam.

i'm getting a little hesetitated about ganso though, i was just baffled about his terrible his first touch and ball control was in the game, he misplaced most of his passes and was easily muscled off the ball whenever he was challenged by other players, i know i can't judge him from one game especially that he's coming off a long term injury but still, he was piss poor, i'll defenitely be keeping a close eye on him in the coming matches and hopefully he'll improve otherwise i think pastore is going to be a much safer bet....