++ [ originally posted by Martin
] ++
Pete, welcome to this place! I'll tell you I don't agree with much you have said however.
First of all your choice of defence. I would not touch Bonera, his reputation has been on a constant decline the past two seasons. And rejecting Trabelsi I must object to, I think he's brilliant and would be an improvement on Thuram (!!!), esp as Thuram is 31 now and Trabelsi is 27.
Don't buy Mexes because Blanc is his idol? First of all you should know that Blanc is one of the finest defenders in French history, he is a living legend. A just because he made some mistakes in his twighlight years at ManU (bad career call btw), doesn't diminish that. As such, Mexes is an excellent defender and half of Europe wants him, why do you think he's not good enough?
The midfield is not fine, it's struggling. You want proof? Both Tudor and Legrottaglie have played in midfield this season. Nedved is in decline, Appiah is struggling and Camoranesi's form is a yoyo. Gasba I think would be great, he's in his 3rd season as a pro and he's largely responsible for Palermo's imminent promotion with all his scoring. I'll be very disappointed if we don't bring him back cause he's a top drawer prospect.
Lippi looks like he's lost his marbles sometimes. He makes puzzling decisions and he seems to prefer the old guard rather than giving the young players a chance. I question his competence at his point because it's starting to look like he's not the good old Lippi. Our squad is not a bad mix of players but this season Lippi hasn't been able to get the most out of them. Montero and Legro look like amateurs for crying out loud. I'm starting to think a change of coach would do us good.