OUR BEST FOREIGN ELEVEN

ivoralljack

ivoralljack

Grizzled Veteran
Staff member
Just for a bit of fun I compiled my best team of non-British players who have represented our club over the years. I hasten to add that this was off the top of my head and I might well alter some names if I took longer to think about it. No loan players are included.

FABIANSKI

ANGEL RANGEL CHICO FLORES ANTE RAJKOVIC JIMMY HABZIABDIC

ANDRE AYEW FERRIE BODDE MICHU SIGGY

BONY

LLORENTE

There are quite a few others I could have included but I won't mention them so as not to influence your choices. The team I did pick though is, I think, very formidable. The back 4 can all play football and in Ante we have a mean machine who is part of a tough central spine along with Bodde and Bony. No one is going to mess us about with them in the team.

As for the front 6 it looks quite frightening. They all score goals with Bodde firing shells from long range. Siggy's set-piece delivery would be perfect for our two lethal finishers in the air, Bony and Llorente. And of course, those two are also excellent at holding up the ball for Michu, Ayew and Siggy to come storming through on goal. I would look to Siggy to provide the craft with lots of energy coming from Ayew and Michu, whilst the long ball stuff would come care of Bodde who could put a forty yarder on a sixpence.

All in all, I think that this team, with players at peak form, would easily have held a place in the top 6 of the Premier League this season. What team would you guys select?
 
Behindthegoal

Behindthegoal

Key Player
Nice work, Ivor. Interesting that all played in PL/1stDiv except Bodde.
I would like to have de Guzman, but Siggy has the edge, I guess.
 
ivoralljack

ivoralljack

Grizzled Veteran
Staff member
Behindthegoal said:
Nice work, Ivor. Interesting that all played in PL/1stDiv except Bodde.
I would like to have de Guzman, but Siggy has the edge, I guess.
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There's a number of players who could put up their hands, JdG being one of them. But wasn't he a loanee? We'd have a pretty useful bench as well with Giorgio Chinaglia (Italian) being one of them.
 
Yankee_Jack

Yankee_Jack

Key Player
Vorm
Flores Rajkovic Fernandez
Rangel Habziabdic
Ki JdG
Pozuello Michu Hernandez (Pablo)

Head Coach / Manager: Laudrup

Subs: Fabianski, Bony, Canas, Sig, Llorente, Agustien, Bessone

Three at the back. Wing backs. Michu up top. With Rajkovic we can benefit from Ki and JdG in the center of midfield
 
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ivoralljack

ivoralljack

Grizzled Veteran
Staff member
Yankee_Jack said:
Vorm
Flores Rajkovic Fernandez
Rangel Habziabdic
Ki JdG
Pozuello Michu Hernandez (Pablo)

Head Coach / Manager: Laudrup

Subs: Fabianski, Bony, Canas, Sig, Llorente, Agustien, Bessone

Three at the back. Wing backs. Michu up top. With Rajkovic we can benefit from Ki and JdG in the center of midfield
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No British players allowed, Yankee. Loanees also excluded, so JdG not eligible - mind you, with both him and Ki midfield, who'd win the ball? Your selection could certainly play football though and I'd love to have found space for Pablo at his best. I liked Canas and Poz as well and felt that they never had the time to properly develop with us. Thank you for nothing, you arsehole Monk. We'd have had a hell of a bench wouldn't we? And, of course, I'd have had Laudrup as manager although I think Rodgers and Martinez would have done a good job with that squad.
 
CroJack

CroJack

Key Player
Here is my 4-1-2-3 formation:

Fabianski

Rangel - Chico - Ante - Jimmy

Canas

Siggy - Bode

Pablo - Michu - Ayew


or 4-1-4-1

Fabianski

Rangel - Chico - Ante - Jimmy

Canas

Pablo - Siggy - Bode - Ayew

Michu

Team.png​
 
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Yankee_Jack

Yankee_Jack

Key Player
Vorm
Flores Rajkovic Fernandez
Rangel Habziabdic
Ki Michu
Pozuello Ayew Hernandez (Pablo)

Head Coach / Manager: Laudrup

Subs: Fabianski, Bony, Canas, Sig, Llorente, Agustien, Bessone

@ivoralljack .... I don't remember Laudrup's teams having to much trouble getting the ball. Dropping JdG for Ayew in his best role at #9 and playing Michu at #10 ... I figure that Rajkovic would play slightly in front of Flores and Fernandez and behind Ki. Basically, if we don't lose the ball we don't have to get it back, but if we do Rajkovic would keep everything honest around Ki, and Michu could be a nasty piece of work when it was required. I'm pondering Bony, but as a matter of style going with Ayew out of sheer mobility.
 
Jackflash

Jackflash

Midfield General
Staff member
Yankee_Jack said:
Vorm
Flores Rajkovic Fernandez
Rangel Habziabdic
Ki Michu
Pozuello Ayew Hernandez (Pablo)

Head Coach / Manager: Laudrup

Subs: Fabianski, Bony, Canas, Sig, Llorente, Agustien, Bessone

@ivoralljack .... I don't remember Laudrup's teams having to much trouble getting the ball. Dropping JdG for Ayew in his best role at #9 and playing Michu at #10 ... I figure that Rajkovic would play slightly in front of Flores and Fernandez and behind Ki. Basically, if we don't lose the ball we don't have to get it back, but if we do Rajkovic would keep everything honest around Ki, and Michu could be a nasty piece of work when it was required. I'm pondering Bony, but as a matter of style going with Ayew out of sheer mobility.
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Yankee, They all conjure up beautiful memories, if only.
 
CroJack

CroJack

Key Player
I omitted Bony and Llorente because I wanted mobility and more pace up front.
If I could, I would play 4-3-3 with Siggy, De Guzman and Bodde in midfield. But loanees are not allowed in this mental excercise. So, I had to decide between Ki and Canas. Ki is an excellent passer, but he is also a snowflake, so Canas was an obvious choice.
Fabianski or Vorm? This is a tough one, but Fabianski has been really excellent, one of the best in the Premier League since he signed for us.
 
KVetch

KVetch

Key Player
Fun exercise. If there is one player not on the list I would include it's Jefferson Montero never lived up to his potential. Jason Scotland, no Michu.
 
KVetch

KVetch

Key Player
Watching the Watford Swansea replay makes me think of this question. Would you rather have a squad of players with top fitness but poor skills or a team of highly skilled players with poor fitness?
 
Jackflash

Jackflash

Midfield General
Staff member
KVetch said:
Watching the Watford Swansea replay makes me think of this question. Would you rather have a squad of players with top fitness but poor skills or a team of highly skilled players with poor fitness?
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I think that would depend quite a lot on who the opposition were.
 
ivoralljack

ivoralljack

Grizzled Veteran
Staff member
KVetch said:
Watching the Watford Swansea replay makes me think of this question. Would you rather have a squad of players with top fitness but poor skills or a team of highly skilled players with poor fitness?
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I once read from one of the top scouts in game that the very first thing he looked for in a player was character and attitude. Then he monitored the player in terms of talent and ability. Ideally a prospect would have both but if he had to settle for one or the other, he'd choose the first attribute. And was very insistent about it.
 
KVetch

KVetch

Key Player
Jackflash said:
I think that would depend quite a lot on who the opposition were.
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It's not a nice question. I would say if you had to manage an entire Championship season. How about you are facing the current Leeds squad? Or the Man City match again.

ivoralljack said:
I once read from one of the top scouts in game that the very first thing he looked for in a player was character and attitude. Then he monitored the player in terms of talent and ability. Ideally a prospect would have both but if he had to settle for one or the other, he'd choose the first attribute. And was very insistent about it.
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I suppose it's easier to teach fitness than skills, and if they have the right attitude it shouldn't be difficult at all. I used to do a little hiring and I would find the people with the most skills were not the best employees. The ones who were unskilled turned out to be great. You could teach them the right methods so they didn't have bad habits. Attitude is the most important quality that gets overlooked too often. I'd rather have the player who was less skilled but ready to play any position even the bench than a more skilled player who would throw a tantrum if he wasn't starting a match.
 
Jackflash

Jackflash

Midfield General
Staff member
KVetch said:
It's not a nice question. I would say if you had to manage an entire Championship season. How about you are facing the current Leeds squad? Or the Man City match again.



I suppose it's easier to teach fitness than skills, and if they have the right attitude it shouldn't be difficult at all. I used to do a little hiring and I would find the people with the most skills were not the best employees. The ones who were unskilled turned out to be great. You could teach them the right methods so they didn't have bad habits. Attitude is the most important quality that gets overlooked too often. I'd rather have the player who was less skilled but ready to play any position even the bench than a more skilled player who would throw a tantrum if he wasn't starting a match.
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We've had a few of them in our time.
 
Yankee_Jack

Yankee_Jack

Key Player
KVetch said:
Watching the Watford Swansea replay makes me think of this question. Would you rather have a squad of players with top fitness but poor skills or a team of highly skilled players with poor fitness?
Click to expand...
Either approach will work with a reasonable degree of success if you have the right coach. Both will fail miserably if the coach resembles a grown up version of a child’s puppet recovering from a bender ... aka our own Andy Pandy.
 
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