João Moutinho

[Teddy Klinsmann]

http://bit.ly/Us9xfS Goal article

 

[dav3j]

Would see both Moutinho and Dembele doing the box to box bit (albeit not at the same time obviously). Will cause an immense headache for opposition teams to mark our players then:

Demebele - can push forward and glide past a player at a moment notice
Moutinho - can push forward too
Sandro - shit even Sandro can make an effective bursting run as seen a few times against reading
Lennon - obviously can beat any player he wants
Bale - enough said really, we all know how much of a threat he is
Ade - if we play him as the lone striker he happily drifts all over the pitch to good effect

With those players in the team and our attacking fullbacks and even Vert in CB who'll get forward occasionally, i'm just not sure as an opposition team how you go about marking our players.

Obviously man marking can't work effectively without keeping 10 men behind the ball and zonal marking would be suicide.

That's pretty much the main thing I noticed about Sandro on New Years Day, he was much higher up the pitch and getting involved in the attacking build up far more - I reckon AVB had told him to push up and retain possession further up the pitch. Whether or not this is a permanent strategy or not I don't know, but we could quite feasibly play with Sandro and Dembele playing ahead of a deep-lying Moutinho. That would be cracking, I'd see us lining up something like this:

Lloris​

Walker Dawson Vertonghen BAE​

Moutinho​

Lennon Sandro Dembele Bale​

Adebayor​

 

[brasil_spur]

That's pretty much the main thing I noticed about Sandro on New Years Day, he was much higher up the pitch and getting involved in the attacking build up far more - I reckon AVB had told him to push up and retain possession further up the pitch. Whether or not this is a permanent strategy or not I don't know, but we could quite feasibly play with Sandro and Dembele playing ahead of a deep-lying Moutinho. That would be cracking, I'd see us lining up something like this:

It's certainly a refreshing change from when Harry used to shout his bollocks off for Sandro to play a very rigid deep lying role (despite scoring a goal against the Chavs).

 

[dav3j]

It's certainly a refreshing change from when Harry used to shout his bollocks off for Sandro to play a very rigid deep lying role (despite scoring a goal against the Chavs).

Very much so. To be honest the whole blurring of the "DM"/"Makelele" role has become so commonplace plenty of people assume this is what players like Sandro do - in reality I can't think of many players around that actually play such a rigid role, even Parker puts himself about the pitch a bit more than this.

 

[Blackcanary]

That's pretty much the main thing I noticed about Sandro on New Years Day, he was much higher up the pitch and getting involved in the attacking build up far more - I reckon AVB had told him to push up and retain possession further up the pitch. Whether or not this is a permanent strategy or not I don't know, but we could quite feasibly play with Sandro and Dembele playing ahead of a deep-lying Moutinho. That would be cracking, I'd see us lining up something like this:

Lloris​

Walker Dawson Vertonghen BAE​

Moutinho​

Lennon Sandro Dembele Bale​

Adebayor​

The way I understand it, that's actually a part of AVB's 'philosophy' for how the midfield works - it's multi-faceted, and rotates, so you don't really have players that are limited to one distinct role, they ALL press and cover as needed.

 

[Bus-Conductor]

It's great to have a flexible philosophy and I'm all for total football, but no-one on their right mind would want Moutinho playing DM behind Sandro given license to bomb on. Sandro's a wonderful busy **** but he lacks finesse and subtlety and gets a nose bleed when he gets anywhere near the opponents box.

In the modern game, its good for all midfielders to be dynamic multi taskers, but some just lend themselves to certain roles and functions better than others, especially given the dynamics of the group they are in. Sandro will always be better deployed with a more defensive brief. It's what he does way better than anything else.

Moutinho is much more you're genuine box to boxer with more emphasis on getting forward. He does not want to be stuck behind people like Sandro.

 

[Nocando]

It's great to have a flexible philosophy and I'm all for total football, but no-one on their right mind would want Moutinho playing DM behind Sandro given license to bomb on. Sandro's a wonderful busy **** but he lacks finesse and subtlety and gets a nose bleed when he gets anywhere near the opponents box.

In the modern game, its good for all midfielders to be dynamic multi taskers, but some just lend themselves to certain roles and functions better than others, especially given the dynamics of the group they are in. Sandro will always be better deployed with a more defensive brief. It's what he does way better than anything else.

Moutinho is much more you're genuine box to boxer with more emphasis on getting forward. He does not want to be stuck behind people like Sandro.

I don't know if this is the place for this but is the intention not to press higher up the pitch without the ball and that would incude Sandro and any other Cm whether a Dm or not? At one point against Reading I saw 4 players pressing their back four, with the defence pratically on the half way line. I can't think of too many teams who are set up this way and unless I'm missing something this is quite unique. Therefore when in possession (and this is the key) a player like Moutinho would be free to position himself where ever he likes on the pitch, whether that's deeper (like Modric or Pirlo or even VDV when he dropped back) or further up behind the striker/s. I don't think Moutinho would be stuck in the mud between the defence on the edge of the area and the rest of the midfield at the half way line. Sandro is quite often in defence and attack, and that's just the nature of the player.

The way AVB plays is just so different and I think Moutinho would find himself in all different kinds of places. However it porbalby doesn't matter as I still will be surprised if he comes.

 

[fritz14]

i think if we are going to get moutinho we are going to have to pay the full price or very close , porto wont be interested in haggling at all and for what he could bring to our team daniel should bite the bullet on this one

 

[gregga]

Surely now we've signed Holtby the Mouts rumours can be put to bed?

 

[gazzeh]

Surely now we've signed Holtby the Mouts rumours can be put to bed?

No. Definitely not. Holtby is 22, and not the finished article. Moutinho will slot into our team seamlessly.

 

[brasil_spur]

Surely now we've signed Holtby the Mouts rumours can be put to bed?

Doubt it. In the summer we sold: Kranjcar, Pienaar, Modric and VdV.

We've now since signed: Dembele, Sigurdsson and Holtby.

On the basis that neither Jenas nor Huddlestone are up to the task and that Parker is both somewhat injury plagued and also 32 years old, i can see us easily signing Mouts in addition to Holtby.

 

[Bus-Conductor]

I don't know if this is the place for this but is the intention not to press higher up the pitch without the ball and that would incude Sandro and any other Cm whether a Dm or not? At one point against Reading I saw 4 players pressing their back four, with the defence pratically on the half way line. I can't think of too many teams who are set up this way and unless I'm missing something this is quite unique. Therefore when in possession (and this is the key) a player like Moutinho would be free to position himself where ever he likes on the pitch, whether that's deeper (like Modric or Pirlo or even VDV when he dropped back) or further up behind the striker/s. I don't think Moutinho would be stuck in the mud between the defence on the edge of the area and the rest of the midfield at the half way line. Sandro is quite often in defence and attack, and that's just the nature of the player.

The way AVB plays is just so different and I think Moutinho would find himself in all different kinds of places. However it porbalby doesn't matter as I still will be surprised if he comes.

As I said, I'm all for fluidity and flexibility but if we are going to draw up default formations, such as the one someone drew up above, then Moutinho, by default should never be starting or defaulting to a position on the pitch behind Sandro.

 

[GetSpurredOn]

With Holtby done, I still think there is room for Moutinho so long as we move out the likes of Jenas, Huddlestone, maybe even Livermore (loaned or sold). Rumours Parker is available for the right price, suggests there must be another midfielder on the horizon. However, if the Sissoko rumours also prove to be true, I'd think Moutinho would be off the menu then.

 

[dg8672]

I posted this in the ITK thread - should have gone here.

I asked Gavin Bunker from SSN, he says:

Gavin Bunker ‏@Gavabayor
@filmadept Mouts is still likely from what ive heard...ppl like jj thudd and livermore are not guna be around much longer

 

[RichSpur58]

It's certainly a refreshing change from when Harry used to shout his bollocks off for Sandro to play a very rigid deep lying role (despite scoring a goal against the Chavs).

someones been playing FM13

 

[mill]

Would see both Moutinho and Dembele doing the box to box bit (albeit not at the same time obviously). Will cause an immense headache for opposition teams to mark our players then:

Demebele - can push forward and glide past a player at a moment notice
Moutinho - can push forward too
Sandro - shit even Sandro can make an effective bursting run as seen a few times against reading
Lennon - obviously can beat any player he wants
Bale - enough said really, we all know how much of a threat he is
Ade - if we play him as the lone striker he happily drifts all over the pitch to good effect

With those players in the team and our attacking fullbacks and even Vert in CB who'll get forward occasionally, i'm just not sure as an opposition team how you go about marking our players.

Obviously man marking can't work effectively without keeping 10 men behind the ball and zonal marking would be suicide.

Shame he hasn't taken anyone on in the last few years then really

 

[mill]

I thought AVB was supposed to favour the split CB system? If so that would require our deepest mid, Sandro or whoever, to drop back and make a back 3 when the FB's bomb forward

 

[spursfan77]

I keep on reading articles saying he'd want £100k a week. I really can't see this being likely or us paying that. Wages in portugal can't be that high so he can't be on half of that now, surely?

 

[brasil_spur]

Shame he hasn't taken anyone on in the last few years then really

A bit harsh/dumb really given Ade's goal against Reading.

 

[brasil_spur]

someones been playing FM13

Ummm no, i just watched Harry rant and shout at Sandro during that, and other, games. If you missed the game you might want to try googling it.