Ernesto Valverde - V1

Raketa10 said:

EV? Nothing! I never thought that appointing him would be a good idea. I never liked him and I was against him from day one.

Sarri is a 60 years old guy and not talented young manager like Pep was so please don’t compare those two.

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Sarri wasn't coaching all his life, he was a banker. He just started coaching 10 years ago or so.

JamDav1982 said:

Zidane has had fair bit of luck as well.

This season almost to a man folk said Real had the better squad than Barca and by a long way.

Real have not been better coached across this season.

Xavi needs to prove it somewhere else even within the club. Which is the difference between him, Zidane, Lucho and Pep.

Xavi could well be being groomed for PSG job anyway.

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Zidane was rubbish at Castilla, it's pretty much certain that his time as Ancelotti's assistant manager did more for his development and ability to handle RM's first team than his stint at Castilla.

And, while they haven't been 'better coached' this year, Zidane is on the cusp of 3 consecutive CL's and 3 successful seasons. He brought RM back to within 1 point of us in 2016 after Benitez got fired and we had a HUGE lead in the league. He won CL and Liga last year. Only this year in La Liga has he truly underwhelmed. CDR is irrelevant across all seasons because it's clear without a shadow of a doubt that RM don't give a flying fuck about it. Their mentality is basically if they can win with 2nd string players then good, if not, who cares.

He has been quite lucky, but a huge part of that is the team dynamic built by his presence. RM feel like winners, believe that they are winners. They find a way to win in CL and never truly collapse like Barca did vs Atletico, PSG, Juve, and Roma. That champion's mentality has taken them farther than Zidane's tactics.

In an ideal world Xavi would become assistant manager for the next season, and if EV doesn't bring the performances up to par, takes over for him in 2019/2020. If you read any of the Xavi interviews I posted a few pages back you'd know his footballing mind is where it needs to be, the only thing missing is acclimating to the rigors of a full European season as coach and handling the motivation of the dressing room.

We need a better player motivator and a person who has authority over them. Sadly, I think there is noone like this out there.

Xavi as an assistant would be good. I'd like to see it.

George_Costanza said:

Yes just like Pep and Lucho. Both didn't win anything but managed Barca.

Sarri is doing a fantastic job giving his limited resources at Napoli. What did EV do to deserve the hot seat?

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I would be thrilled with Sarri as well, but sadly I see 0 chance of that happening. Doesn't have the ties to the club which are an 'unspoken requirement' for coaching here. Wouldn't be surprised if the name "Sarri" has never once crossed the mind of Segura or Bartomeu.

DonAndres said:

Zidane was rubbish at Castilla, it's pretty much certain that his time as Ancelotti's assistant manager did more for his development and ability to handle RM's first team than his stint at Castilla.

And, while they haven't been 'better coached' this year, Zidane is on the cusp of 3 consecutive CL's and 3 successful seasons. He brought RM back to within 1 point of us in 2016 after Benitez got fired and we had a HUGE lead in the league. He won CL and Liga last year. Only this year in La Liga has he truly underwhelmed. CDR is irrelevant across all seasons because it's clear without a shadow of a doubt that RM don't give a flying fuck about it. Their mentality is basically if they can win with 2nd string players then good, if not, who cares.

He has been quite lucky, but a huge part of that is the team dynamic built by his presence. RM feel like winners, believe that they are winners. They find a way to win in CL and never truly collapse like Barca did vs Atletico, PSG, Juve, and Roma. That champion's mentality has taken them farther than Zidane's tactics.

In an ideal world Xavi would become assistant manager for the next season, and if EV doesn't bring the performances up to par, takes over for him in 2019/2020. If you read any of the Xavi interviews I posted a few pages back you'd know his footballing mind is where it needs to be, the only thing missing is acclimating to the rigors of a full European season as coach and handling the motivation of the dressing room.

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Zidane worked within the club and allowed them to better understand what he was all about. Xavi hasnt. It also shows something.

Three CLs in four years as I said there has been a fair bit of luck involved there it is not about 'feeling like winners' unless that causes other teams to make mistakes or get given offside goals etc.

Xavi comes across as a bit of a perfectionist/control freak type who has an ideal and wants it done his way. Dont think that translates well to being a no.2 .

He should take the B team job but apparently turned it down before.

I have read his interviews and I have also read his comments after defeats to likes of Bayern and read him praise likes of Banega as his type of player. Could go either way.

If I try to rate his season, I'd say it's very good. We shouldn't forget that we had a system which worked so well. 442 with Paulinho behind the strikers. But I don't know if he's good enough for what's comming.

Integrating Coutinho and Dembele didn't work well for him.

serghei said:

Calderon didn't have near the same success. It's true that the plans are short to medium term, and the long term ones aren't as lucid.

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Depends what you rate as success too. Calderon's biggest success was being responsible for that period of time where Madrid went completely away from pointless attacking transfers every summer. His appointments and talent pool that was being scouted was here and there, but he and Mijatović can take quite a lot of credit for the transfer policy. You could say the lack of CL progress was his fault, but there were hardly any coaches at the time who would have the same effect as Mourinho. Still he put a stop to Beckhams and Owens, shipped out the undisciplined Brazillians, brought in Marcelo, Pepe, Gago and Higuain as future projects (3/4 have had successful careers), brought in good to great players in Sneijder, Robben, Van Nistelrooy, some rather washed up ones in Metzelder or Cannavaro and downright stupid ones like Faubert, devoted 2 summers to strike the deal with United for Ronaldo. Transfers proved to actually not have been completely terrible, but pretty fair on the balance. The biggest problem was lack of progress and self-belief in the identity of being the top dogs, which Perez restored.

A lot of parallels, but Barca's problems are simpler. Not one locker room leader, just a clique of those who jumped on the bandwagon early enough to now be able to call themselves senior players. And scapegoating utility players isn't where problem lies. Marcelo, Ramos and Pepe were inferior defenders who have turned into almost irreplaceable pieces with time. Same can apply to Gomes et al with right guidance and team spirit. That is lacking in the dressing room.

This squad has a number of players who think they aren't undroppable and have massive influence in the locker room.

Valverde isn't a terrible coach but for me what he lacks isn't just tactical But he seems to lack that grit and personality to put things in order when needed like Lucho. Only thing I can explain on why guys like Suarez can easily get a free pass on shit. It's because Valverde seems like he's afraid of putting the guy in his place.

Suarez isn't the only guy in this squad that needs to get a nice kick in the rear. Even guys like Busi,Rakitic etc guys who won everything there needs to win also need a nice kick in the ass now and then.

Based on every tendency EV has shown this season, I have a feeling that if we get Griezmann next season our lineup will be this:

--------Suarez-Messi
Griezmann-----------Coutinho
---------Busi---Rakitic
Alba---Umtiti-------Pique--Semedo

And yes, with Coutinho on the right. EV has some obsession against inverted wingers in this 4-4-2 and consistently plays Cou on the right when Dembele isn't starting (which he very likely won't be next year). He's also very big on Suarez and I strongly expect he'll refuse to drop him.

This lineup is a terrible fit for Messi, Busi, Coutinho, and Griezmann. But I wouldn't be surprised if he did it, to accomodate Rakitic and Suarez.

DonAndres said:

Based on every tendency EV has shown this season, I have a feeling that if we get Griezmann next season our lineup will be this:

--------Suarez-Messi
Griezmann-----------Coutinho
---------Busi---Rakitic
Alba---Umtiti-------Pique--Semedo

And yes, with Coutinho on the right. EV has some obsession against inverted wingers in this 4-4-2 and consistently plays Cou on the right when Dembele isn't starting (which he very likely won't be next year). He's also very big on Suarez and I strongly expect he'll refuse to drop him.

This lineup is a terrible fit for Messi, Busi, Coutinho, and Griezmann. But I wouldn't be surprised if he did it, to accomodate Rakitic and Suarez.

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Switch Coutinho and Griezmann and Roberto at RB more likely.

DonAndres said:

Based on every tendency EV has shown this season, I have a feeling that if we get Griezmann next season our lineup will be this:

--------Suarez-Messi
Griezmann-----------Coutinho
---------Busi---Rakitic
Alba---Umtiti-------Pique--Semedo

And yes, with Coutinho on the right. EV has some obsession against inverted wingers in this 4-4-2 and consistently plays Cou on the right when Dembele isn't starting (which he very likely won't be next year). He's also very big on Suarez and I strongly expect he'll refuse to drop him.

This lineup is a terrible fit for Messi, Busi, Coutinho, and Griezmann. But I wouldn't be surprised if he did it, to accomodate Rakitic and Suarez.

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I think he reminds him of his boy Aduriz with his character.

JamDav1982 said:

Zidane worked within the club and allowed them to better understand what he was all about. Xavi hasnt. It also shows something.

Three CLs in four years as I said there has been a fair bit of luck involved there it is not about 'feeling like winners' unless that causes other teams to make mistakes or get given offside goals etc.

Xavi comes across as a bit of a perfectionist/control freak type who has an ideal and wants it done his way. Dont think that translates well to being a no.2 .

He should take the B team job but apparently turned it down before.

I have read his interviews and I have also read his comments after defeats to likes of Bayern and read him praise likes of Banega as his type of player. Could go either way.

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Xavi already coached Barca first team when Tito was sick for half season, do you think Jordi Roura was actually the coach?! lol And I would say his presence and dressing room authority in 2015/14 one of the main reason we won the last UCL. No need for him to coach Barca B since he is proven above that level.

DonAndres said:

Based on every tendency EV has shown this season, I have a feeling that if we get Griezmann next season our lineup will be this:

--------Suarez-Messi
Griezmann-----------Coutinho
---------Busi---Rakitic
Alba---Umtiti-------Pique--Semedo

And yes, with Coutinho on the right. EV has some obsession against inverted wingers in this 4-4-2 and consistently plays Cou on the right when Dembele isn't starting (which he very likely won't be next year). He's also very big on Suarez and I strongly expect he'll refuse to drop him.

This lineup is a terrible fit for Messi, Busi, Coutinho, and Griezmann. But I wouldn't be surprised if he did it, to accomodate Rakitic and Suarez.

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We won't win UCL with this lineup for sure, and Real won't make it easy for us to win the league like they did this season.

Still astonished we managed to concede 5 goals to Levante.

Even more shocking than conceding 3 goals in Rome but on a much smaller stage, needs to be said.

EV just keep outdoing himself.