benzema is not a star, give me a break

Pep and Mou always do it

Pep has benched Kroos, Aguero, Ibra, Muller, Yaya, etc. Even players he's like have fallen to the axe like Bravo and even Stones a few times was put on the bench when he had horror shows. He's even taken star players out due to tactically reasons on many occasions. Before you say they're superstar coaches or more proven Pep was doing this even in his Barca days no different to the situation Zidane is in.

As DoC said James has been benched by Zidane who's considered a superstar, he has no excuse.

Yes he is... in Flo's eyes, which is what counts. in my eyes? He's not.

And the problem is that Morata was not Zidane's call and he doesn't trust him (very obviously)... not to mention he's great as a sub but not so good as a starter. I'd rather keep Morata in the role he excels at.

I'm all for replacing Benzema once we buy a proper alternative. I also think that we need to try and get Benz going if we stand a chance this season. We only have 2 CFs on the squad. Kicking Benzema to the curb is not smart. Most teams have 3 CFs of course... but we don't. This is what happens when you don't do the obvious in the transfer window.

He (clearly) doesn't trust Morata but Benzema has 5 La Liga goals. 5 Sports. I would say it again, Benzema could get Zidane fired if he continues to demand a spot. Perez likes Benzema but he also likes trophies and Benzema is clearly not starting material, not in La Liga anyway.

It's incredibly ironic that Isco and Morata comes on and saves his ass though.

sportsczy wrote:Yes he is... in Flo's eyes, which is what counts. in my eyes? He's not.

And the problem is that Morata was not Zidane's call and he doesn't trust him (very obviously)... not to mention he's great as a sub but not so good as a starter. I'd rather keep Morata in the role he excels at.

I'm all for replacing Benzema once we buy a proper alternative. I also think that we need to try and get Benz going if we stand a chance this season. We only have 2 CFs on the squad. Kicking Benzema to the curb is not smart. Most teams have 3 CFs of course... but we don't. This is what happens when you don't do the obvious in the transfer window.

even if this team had three centre forwards, benzema would still be the starter.

he needs to be sold, ronaldo as well.

Benzema isnt a goal scorer, he cant hold up the ball, his link up play and short pass have become less and less.

Its better to have a number ten or an attacking midfielder in this line up.

my point is, i want to go back to people competing for spots. i'm not necessarily pro-morata, but if he goes, i never want this thing of having one cf and another as back up who will only play during injuries or suspensions, UNLESS, the main cf is producing something crazy like 30 plus league goals and 38 plus in all competitions. in such a scenario, i get it, competition is tough to promote in that instance

but when the cf blows hot and cold, then most definitely i want them on their toes. i felt benzema was at his best when there was active competition. he doesn't produce enough to warrant not having any competition for his spot. and even when he was producing he would gas out towards the seasons close, or at the start of the season. his best full season from start to finish was that season we last won la liga.

and i hope kova isn't losing his confidence, we need to start finding ways to get him minutes too. one way or another

I doubt we would ever have the sort of situation we had with Higuain and Benzema competing in their primes anytime soon but I agree with your post Tito.

Doc wrote:I doubt we would ever have the sort of situation we had with Higuain and Benzema competing in their primes anytime soon but I agree with your post Tito.

to be honest, in mou's last year i wanted us to get rid of both of them.

Why are people putting Varane in the same boat as Benz? the former has had plenty of good games this season and a handful of bad games while the latter the opposite.

Varane hasn't had a game this season where he hasn't made a huge foulup. He hasn't a good game since that Barca performance 4 years ago.

He quite simply has not developed into that star CB that we all were expecting he would be. Granted he's not as bad as Benzema is, but he should not be our #2 CB and it can argued that Nacho has played better than him. It's time we looked in a difference direction for a #3, and that's assuming Zidane and Perez do the right thing and restore Pepe to #2 and renew him.

And while we are at it, given Zidane's performance, his renewal should also be argued even if he does win liga or CL.

It's time, we looked elsewhere from France for solutions.

Bill. Right. Varane hasn't had a good game all season.

Maybe they'll find a cure for Alzheimer's soon enough. One can only hope.

Varane has had a good season overall, he's made the occasional mistake, where he really screwed up was the valencia game and thats inexcusable. But he has shown his quality.

Benzema has been mediocre. The solution would be to play ronaldo at CF, he plays much better as a lone CF one, two he will score even if he plays like trash.

Z when asked about what did he say to Morata before he subbed him in:

I didn't tell him [Morata] anything specific, tactical details. To be in the penalty box because we were going to cross a lot.

So no tactical instructions and just crosses? Shocking

to be fair what did you expect him to tell morata? it was straightforward imo, "watch what benzema and cristiano are doing today, and do the opposite", no need for any tactical instruction whatsoever.

FennecFox7 wrote:Varane has had a good season overall, he's made the occasional mistake, where he really screwed up was the valencia game and thats inexcusable. But he has shown his quality.

Benzema has been mediocre. The solution would be to play Ronaldo at CF, he plays much better as a lone CF one, two he will score even if he plays like trash.

I disagree Giggs, Varane ain't having a good season by any stretch. Would go so far as to say he is having a poor season where even Ramos, the perennial idiot of CBs, is doing better. We can harp on about his talent (which he has a lot of) but Madrid really demands more from their players.

I am also sure you can find a stronger word than "mediocre" to describe Benzema's season

I disagree with you Doc.  Players are rated based on the expectations you place on them.  Varane has shown he can be the best CB in the world so you put those expectations on him.  So when he's not playing at an elite level, but just a good level, his mistakes are over-dramatized generally.

Ramos, on the other hand, is expected to make mistakes and perform generally very inconsistently on defense.  So you tend to brush off his many mistakes (like the two he made in this last game) and notice his good performances.

Pepe used to be like Ramos... but for a few year now, he's more like Varane.  When he makes a mistake, you notice.

That's the thing with good defenders... their mistakes stick out like a sore thumb.  Remember Nesta?  He was soundly criticized when he was young for the same reasons Varane is:  Namely, he set a very high standard at a very young age and then played inconsistently for about a year.  Difference is that, back then, you couldn't see every game so you only heard about it via the club's fans as opposed to seeing every mistake on TV.  Not saying that Varane is anywhere near Nesta... just pointing out that even the all time great CBs struggled some when they were young.  Young CBs struggle at times.  It's just one of those things.  Other issue is that Varane has changed training regimens due to injuries.  That may not sound like much to us... but it's pretty dramatic for a pro athlete who obsess with routine.

I won't even mention Marcelo because your start crying with joy when he makes a defensive play lol.

Have to ask Sports, you really find Varane playing at a good level? I harbour no ill feelings towards him or any of the French contingent so when I say Varane ain't having the best of seasons, it isn't coming from a place of malice or skewed opinions. Honestly not seeing much good from him this season, a sort of minor regression so to speak.

Mostly, yes. Reason I say this is that his role (like Pepe in his place) is a bit unusual. Namely, Marcelo doesn't defend and Ramos doesn't have the best instincts. So Varane/Pepe have to kind of watch and react to whatever those two end up doing... as opposed to just doing their typical job. It's difficult and it causes hesitancy and mistakes. You see them look left with the hope that their athleticism will allow them to recover right most times.

The times when Varane looked like an absolute beast was when Mourinho and Carlo played Coentrao as a regular. He was a good defender. It allowed for the rest of the defense to read and react more normally. Varane could be aggressive in that setup and really show his stuff.

I also see him on France NT and he's solid.

The reality at Real Madrid is that Ramos and Marcelo are pillars so the other CB has to be able to handle the unusual role he's put into. Will Varane adapt to it like Pepe has? Maybe. He doesn't have the experience so he relies more on athleticism than anticipation. As he gets experience and combines better anticipation with the athleticism, it will get better.

The more he's on the pitch and gets live info, the better he will be.

Also remember Varane looking really good when Nacho is either his CB partner or playing instead of Marcelo. That's not coincidence.

varane had a shitty game against valencia, and he's had some clumsy games this season, i'm not bashing him as much because i have the feeling he can get better, he's like what? 23/24? ramos at that age, from a defensive standpoint was worse (and i'm not sure he ever improved, just that he all of a sudden developed some clutch gene). there's still a good chance varane can get better. we'll see when he gets back from injury. it's not like he's 29 plus. but for now, pepe should take the reins until varane sorts his mental relapses. i definitely do NOT want us selling a 24 year old defender to another european rival

and its very ridiculous to say "don't sign from france" just cos a couple players aren't in form. if there was some beast from there who's playing well, then regardless of whether all the players from their national team are messing up, i'll say sign that talent......that being said, i never want us to sign anybody from porto ever again.....no, not because of danilo, i just can't stand porto in general

You do realize that Pepe will leave this summer if he isn't regarded as #2?

And for the record, I didn't say don't sign from France, I said we should get rid of Benz, that it's time to recognize Varane is not our #2, that he should have to earn that spot back and if he can't do it (or accept that, i.e. No more blackmail), then we should look at other options. And re Zidane, I said the board should not automatically renew him regardless of results and should analyse what has been wrong with team this season and who is responsible for it especially if we have several discontent players wanting out.

i've always considered pepe a better defender than ramos, i like pepe's defensive play for the most part, but he's no spring chicken, the guy is in his mid 30s; 34/35. i was also upset at varane's valencia play, and as i mentioned before, varane's been clumsy this year. its a thin line- and the best case scenario is for both to compete, also recognizing that, one guy is on the downside of his career. pepe will be 35 next year, and has had issues with injury.....as great a defender as he is, and as much as i admire his play (the best defender on our team), i can't get upset at him not getting a new deal

at this point we should be thinking about how we can move forward, than pinning our hopes on someone who's almost done because of age, and the fact he's had injury issues, which won't get any better at 35. i do agree varane should earn the spot back, but i don't agree with hinging on pepe like he has 4 more years to give.

Arguing over varane, when there are way more glaring problems with this team.

varane should start, no doubt. he is one of the best center back in football today.

Exactly.  Who is better than Varane out there?  Heck, is Ramos better than Varane defensively?  Pepe is probably the best CB in the world defensively today.  So of course he will look for a long term and lucrative contract.  But do we want to lose Varane to extend Pepe?  Because that's the tradeoff.

And it's not blackmail to ask the club whether you are going to be a regular at the age of 23.  it's every player's right to want to play.  If Real Madrid feel that Varane isn't a regular here, he's just asking to go somewhere else.  You know who has made similar demands not long ago?  Ramos and Pepe.  When Varane was clearly better a couple of years ago, they made that same request.  Why should Varane play it differently?  He accepted a secondary role at the time... but no longer.

No top player would want to be on the bench. No player is going to compromise his career for a club.

Chad wya bro your boy has been slacking im done supporting him

I dont know why you guys are upset we almost lost to Villarreal they have been a top 5 side in la liga this season.

And you guys are talking like there's better defenders out there at Varane's age lmao