Coentrao vs Alba

Overall?

coentrao is a better defender and is OK going forward. alba is good going forward but not nearly as good defensively.

overall id say coentrao.

^ this more or less

Alba, both offensively and defensively.

Coentrao is one of the best in the world in terms of defensive skills. Alba isn't even better than Marcelo defensive wise.

Coentrao is better defensively and more solid, Alba is better attacking wise.

I think Coentrao's attacking ability is underrated though.

Don't compare that defensive scrub Marcelo with Alba.

futbol wrote:Don't compare that defensive scrub Marcelo with Alba.

"the defensive scrub Marcelo" dissapeard 3 years ago. Since Mourinho came he improved very much. He is not great, but quite good, but when someone provides so much in attack, it compensates.

likeastar wrote:

futbol wrote:Don't compare that defensive scrub Marcelo with Alba.

"the defensive scrub Marcelo" dissapeard 3 years ago. Since Mourinho came he improved very much. He is not great, but quite good, but when someone provides so much in attack, it compensates.

I don't see it like that.

Mourinho has tactically improved your general defensive play by turning you into a pure counterattacking outfit and making your front 4 press high up the pitch and you have 2 defensive, physical bodies in the middle that don't get involved into the playmaking stuff and mainly cover your back 4. Marcelo individually hasn't changed much however. You just have a system which covers his defensive weaknesses better than 3 years ago similar to how Barcelona's 3 man defense under Guardiola (Abidal-Puyol-Pique) covered Alves' adventurous forward runs perfectly. Mourinho never trusted Marcelo though. He benched him in the Camp Nou La Liga Clasico last season, in the Allianz Arena, in both Copa del Rey quarter-final Clasicos last season and in the return leg Clasico of the Supercopa. Basically all the big games you've played last season. And the 1 Clasico he actually started you got trounced 1-3 in the Bernabeu. With a Marcelo own goal and another goal coming through his side (Alves cross to Fabregas' header). And then people come here and claim that Marcelo is a good defender, let alone "the best leftback in the world".

There are fullbacks that are superb going forward and get mistaken to be weak defensively just because of the former (like Alba). And then there are fullbacks which are superb going forward but also really weak defensively. Like Marcelo.

Some stats about Alba's defensive abilities:

Alba has the third highest interception rate in La Liga: 3.3 per game. Which is ridiculous because a side like Barcelona with 70 %+ possesion numbers doesn't actually intercept as many balls as other teams. Dani Alves averages 0.7 interceptions per game.

Alba averages 2.3 clearances per game. Alves averages 1.2.

Alba gets dribbles 0.3 times per game. Marcelo was one of the most dribbled players in La Liga last season. 1.4 times per game, more than 4 times as much as Alba (the most dribbled player was Xabi Alonso btw., 1.6 times per game, the immobile turtle ).

futbol wrote:

likeastar wrote:

futbol wrote:Don't compare that defensive scrub Marcelo with Alba.

"the defensive scrub Marcelo" dissapeard 3 years ago. Since Mourinho came he improved very much. He is not great, but quite good, but when someone provides so much in attack, it compensates.

I don't see it like that.

Mourinho has tactically improved your general defensive play by turning you into a pure counterattacking outfit and making your front 4 press high up the pitch and you have 2 defensive, physical bodies in the middle that don't get involved into the playmaking stuff and mainly cover your back 4. Marcelo individually hasn't changed much however. You just have a system which covers his defensive weaknesses better than 3 years ago similar to how Barcelona's 3 man defense under Guardiola (Abidal-Puyol-Pique) covered Alves' adventurous forward runs perfectly. Mourinho never trusted Marcelo though. He benched him in the Camp Nou La Liga Clasico last season, in the Allianz Arena, in both Copa del Rey quarter-final Clasicos last season and in the return leg Clasico of the Supercopa. Basically all the big games you've played last season. And the 1 Clasico he actually started you got trounced 1-3 in the Bernabeu. With a Marcelo own goal and another goal coming through his side (Alves cross to Fabregas' header). And then people come here and claim that Marcelo is a good defender, let alone "the best leftback in the world".

There are fullbacks that are superb going forward and get mistaken to be weak defensively just because of the former (like Alba). And then there are fullbacks which are superb going forward but also really weak defensively. Like Marcelo.

Some stats about Alba's defensive abilities:

Alba has the third highest interception rate in La Liga: 3.3 per game. Which is ridiculous because a side like Barcelona with 70 %+ possesion numbers doesn't actually intercept as many balls as other teams. Dani Alves averages 0.7 interceptions per game.

Alba averages 2.3 clearances per game. Alves averages 1.2.

Alba gets dribbles 0.3 times per game. Marcelo was one of the most dribbled players in La Liga last season. 1.4 times per game, more than 4 times as much as Alba (the most dribbled player was Xabi Alonso btw., 1.6 times per game, the immobile turtle ).

Alba played as a winger last season.

Alonso doesn't get involved in the playmaking?

I took Alba's stats from THIS season. Marcelo's from last season because he has barely played this season.

futbol wrote:

likeastar wrote:

futbol wrote:Don't compare that defensive scrub Marcelo with Alba.

"the defensive scrub Marcelo" dissapeard 3 years ago. Since Mourinho came he improved very much. He is not great, but quite good, but when someone provides so much in attack, it compensates.

I don't see it like that.

Mourinho has tactically improved your general defensive play by turning you into a pure counterattacking outfit and making your front 4 press high up the pitch and you have 2 defensive, physical bodies in the middle that don't get involved into the playmaking stuff and mainly cover your back 4. Marcelo individually hasn't changed much however. You just have a system which covers his defensive weaknesses better than 3 years ago similar to how Barcelona's 3 man defense under Guardiola (Abidal-Puyol-Pique) covered Alves' adventurous forward runs perfectly. Mourinho never trusted Marcelo though. He benched him in the Camp Nou La Liga Clasico last season, in the Allianz Arena, in both Copa del Rey quarter-final Clasicos last season and in the return leg Clasico of the Supercopa. Basically all the big games you've played last season. And the 1 Clasico he actually started you got trounced 1-3 in the Bernabeu. With a Marcelo own goal and another goal coming through his side (Alves cross to Fabregas' header). And then people come here and claim that Marcelo is a good defender, let alone "the best leftback in the world".

There are fullbacks that are superb going forward and get mistaken to be weak defensively just because of the former (like Alba). And then there are fullbacks which are superb going forward but also really weak defensively. Like Marcelo.

Some stats about Alba's defensive abilities:

Alba has the third highest interception rate in La Liga: 3.3 per game. Which is ridiculous because a side like Barcelona with 70 %+ possesion numbers doesn't actually intercept as many balls as other teams. Dani Alves averages 0.7 interceptions per game.

Alba averages 2.3 clearances per game. Alves averages 1.2.

Alba gets dribbles 0.3 times per game. Marcelo was one of the most dribbled players in La Liga last season. 1.4 times per game, more than 4 times as much as Alba (the most dribbled player was Xabi Alonso btw., 1.6 times per game, the immobile turtle ).

DAT ARGUMENTATION

coentrao is the best lb in the world, its a shame to compare jessica with him really

Marcelo shits all over alba when fit. Why is this even an arguement

Giggity5313 wrote:Marcelo shits all over alba when fit. Why is this even an arguement

Instead of that, why dont you counter the points made above?

I dont like either, actually I think Marcelo is better still...but those points above are really hard to argue against.

Probably why you have not bothered?

thierrycwb wrote:

futbol wrote:

likeastar wrote:

"the defensive scrub Marcelo" dissapeard 3 years ago. Since Mourinho came he improved very much. He is not great, but quite good, but when someone provides so much in attack, it compensates.

I don't see it like that.

Mourinho has tactically improved your general defensive play by turning you into a pure counterattacking outfit and making your front 4 press high up the pitch and you have 2 defensive, physical bodies in the middle that don't get involved into the playmaking stuff and mainly cover your back 4. Marcelo individually hasn't changed much however. You just have a system which covers his defensive weaknesses better than 3 years ago similar to how Barcelona's 3 man defense under Guardiola (Abidal-Puyol-Pique) covered Alves' adventurous forward runs perfectly. Mourinho never trusted Marcelo though. He benched him in the Camp Nou La Liga Clasico last season, in the Allianz Arena, in both Copa del Rey quarter-final Clasicos last season and in the return leg Clasico of the Supercopa. Basically all the big games you've played last season. And the 1 Clasico he actually started you got trounced 1-3 in the Bernabeu. With a Marcelo own goal and another goal coming through his side (Alves cross to Fabregas' header). And then people come here and claim that Marcelo is a good defender, let alone "the best leftback in the world".

There are fullbacks that are superb going forward and get mistaken to be weak defensively just because of the former (like Alba). And then there are fullbacks which are superb going forward but also really weak defensively. Like Marcelo.

Some stats about Alba's defensive abilities:

Alba has the third highest interception rate in La Liga: 3.3 per game. Which is ridiculous because a side like Barcelona with 70 %+ possesion numbers doesn't actually intercept as many balls as other teams. Dani Alves averages 0.7 interceptions per game.

Alba averages 2.3 clearances per game. Alves averages 1.2.

Alba gets dribbles 0.3 times per game. Marcelo was one of the most dribbled players in La Liga last season. 1.4 times per game, more than 4 times as much as Alba (the most dribbled player was Xabi Alonso btw., 1.6 times per game, the immobile turtle ).

DAT ARGUMENTATION

the teams they play for have no effect on those stats do they?

You can't really judge a defender on stats, really any player for that matter. The only players that can be somewhat judged on stat output is forwards and their goal record and even then its pretty subjective.

The best judge of a defender and any player is your own eyes.

for a defender - is he in the right areas, is he making the right tackles, is he making decisive tackles, does he close down attackers at the right moments, how does he move the ball from the defensive third into the midfield third, is he rounded- can he supply help in attack, and of course speed, agility, balance, strength are all important to support the above.

those are the questions one should be asking.

'clearances' and 'tackles' type statistics are very easily influenced by a number of different variables and a lot of those variables come from how the team they play for plays.

vanDEEZ wrote:

the teams they play for have no effect on those stats do they?

You can't really judge a defender on stats, really any player for that matter. The only players that can be somewhat judged on stat output is forwards and their goal record and even then its pretty subjective.

The best judge of a defender and any player is your own eyes.

for a defender - is he in the right areas, is he making the right tackles, is he making decisive tackles, does he close down attackers at the right moments, how does he move the ball from the defensive third into the midfield third, is he rounded- can he supply help in attack, and of course speed, agility, balance, strength are all important to support the above.

those are the questions one should be asking.

'clearances' and 'tackles' type statistics are very easily influenced by a number of different variables and a lot of those variables come from how the team they play for plays.

I do agree with that, hence why I find the interception stat pretty interesting.

But yeah, I do agree that you can't judge players on stats. Which is why I find it absurd that people say that Özil is better than Iniesta just because he has more assist or when people say that Valdes is better than Casillas because he has more Zamora's, but that's a whole other arguement..