[CL] Real Madrid 1-1 JUVENTUS (May 13th, 2015) (47 Viewers)

MOM

  • Juventus

  • Juventus


Results are only viewable after voting.

s4tch

Senior Member
Mar 23, 2015
33,676
dunno, i'll just rely on my pirlo.xlsx here:

with him on the pitch, we score every 49 minutes and we concede every 112 minutes. (in the cl, it's 69 and 123 min.)
without him on the pitch, we score every 55 minutes and we concede every 286 minutes. (in the cl, it's 62 and 372 min.)

in the cl, we score more often and concede a lot less without him. stats say it all, end of story. #pirloout
 

FuriaCeca

Senior Member
Jun 2, 2014
727
There is no point discussing the Pirlo thing. Not even one source tried to suggest that Allegri might consider benching Pirlo. Pirlo will start. Lets just pray for the best, although Im not optimistic.

In the first leg Pirlo had Bale chasing him around, Bale was aweful at pressing Pirlo, very often leaving him lots of space. If Real deploy James in that role, they might have a much bigger chance of killing us.
 
Jun 13, 2007
7,233
I have also been one of the people who think pirlo should sit this one out but really, when you think about it, there are too many scenarios where he will be called for. I know the reasons for why he shouldn't be included: his lack of speed, his 1st leg sloppy passing, his lack of defensive pressure (although did well last game), but here are some reasons why him starting is a good thing for us.

He'll be able to help us maintain possession. When he's in the side, yeah we pass the ball around more but we also keep it away from players like Ronaldo. I think that's a huge factor in being able to beat real.

He'll be able to control the pace of the game. If real have numbers up front, he can do a lot of damage when in space. I've seen two players successfully be able to hit the opponents defence with a lobbed one touch through pass, Pirlo and Marchisio.

He has the most CL experience out of anyone in the side. He's been there, several times. That's why the pressure doesn't get to him as much and yes this is a double edged sword. As long as he keeps his dribbling in defence to a minimum, we won't suffer. The lack of pressure he feels can be an advantage however, when it comes to dead ball situations. When he's called upon to end the game with a free kick, there's no one in the world is rather take it than him.

It's a tough choice and there's an obvious tradeoff by playing him, but I think people shouldn't be too quick to want to exclude him. Let's not forget how good this guy can be. Hopefully with Pogba back, we will have more options, and since Sturaro was great last time, our midfield in Pirlo, Marchisio, Vidal, Pogba, Pereyra, Sturaro is a luxury to choose from.

Also,I have a question. When was the last time we played with Pirlo, Pogba, Vidal, Marchisio?
 

MikeM

Footballing Hipster celebrating 4th place with Tuz
Sep 21, 2008
12,849
Pirlo will be better protected with MVP around him but I think in the 2nd leg his influence will not be as important. I think he influences the game more when he is pulling a CM out of position. I think we had a clear tactic in the 1st leg to have him draw Kroos up the field to create space in between the midfield-defence line for Tevez and Vidal.

There were a lot of useless, short, negative passes or 1-2s between Pirlo and the CBs just to force a reaction from Kroos or another midfielder, then we immediately went up the sidelines and back into the vacated centre of the field.

But in the 2nd leg I would guess Madrid is pressing immediately so those spaces will be there automatically.

There is a part of me that wishes we would play all our athletes and go up and down for 90 minutes and see what the score says after 90 minutes. I've said it before but I don't think Madrid likes to play this way. They like to go 100 mph forward and walk back. But teams let them do that over and over again (except Atletico who they can't beat). James, Kroos, Isco, Bale, Ronaldo, Benzema and even Ramos at CM... they don't like to sprint back. They like to walk back and setup their shape. Then sprint forward when they nick a pass.

If you put that midfield in a running match against Marchisio, Vidal, Pogba and Pereyra they will be crushed I think. Absolutely crushed.

But this is a fantasy of mine that I will never see lol.
 

Users Who Are Viewing This Thread (Users: 0, Guests: 47)