Mauricio Isla (10 Viewers)

Xperd

Allegrophobic Infidel
Jun 1, 2012
32,407
#23
In true Juve-tradition, I might add. Historically, we always fielded very physical teams. Opponents used to sh*t their pants before their match vs. Juve. Conte knows what this club is about, he knew what was missing, and he has brought it back.
I'm very confident of us facing the big teams in CL next season especially Barcelona and the likes..To compliment the rock solid defense we have a f**king awesome midfield with a blend of creativity,pressing and positioning along with being tactically astute.If you take the wingbacks into account which essentially makes it a 5 man midfield.

I believe our defense was so good last season mainly cuz of our midfield.We are upgrading it now with beastly additions and things would only get better from now on.
 

Jem83

maitre'd at Canal Bar
Nov 7, 2005
22,865
#24
I'm very confident of us facing the big teams in CL next season especially Barcelona and the likes..To compliment the rock solid defense we have a f**king awesome midfield with a blend of creativity,pressing and positioning along with being tactically astute.If you take the wingbacks into account which essentially makes it a 5 man midfield.

I believe our defense was so good last season mainly cuz of our midfield.We are upgrading it now with beastly additions and things would only get better from now on.
I have the same feeling. Hopefully we're right :D

However, it's crucial that we add the top striker to all of this, if we want to go far in the CL. But yeah, it's looking very good so far :tup:
 

baggio

Senior Member
Jun 3, 2003
19,250
#25
Potentially, the transfer of the season. Let's hope he recovers quick enough and doesnt have to wait like Quag for Conte to gradually phase him in.

Can we nickname him the kracken?! :)

---------- Post added 15.06.2012 at 19:04 ----------

Is there any irony related to over whose head the word soon appears in this picture??? :p
 

mukumsplau

Senior Member
Jul 9, 2008
4,433
#26
In true Juve-tradition, I might add. Historically, we always fielded very physical teams. Opponents used to sh*t their pants before their match vs. Juve. Conte knows what this club is about, he knew what was missing, and he has brought it back.
:tup:

this is it. conte knows we have to dominate physically and technically as juve pre-2006. i must say i was worried of going in to CL facing the other powerhouses with padoin-type players (no disrespect intended to padoin)...we need players with drive..with a beastly engine..with character and bite...and in kojo and mauricio we have that plus loads of technical and tactical ability that can stand up physically, mentally and tactically to whatever the madrids or barcas or bayerns etc can throw at us...thats how we build our side...

ppl worry about this one and that one too good for bench and who will displace who have missed the whole plot to this thing...the end result we should be concerned is the performance on the field regardless of who plays...either u shape up or ship out of the starting lineup..

teams will be run ragged and late on in games when they are tired it will even be more depressing to them that we have more power on the bench to bring in...

also we need a vucinic alternate ss/wide forward/creativity upfront type player....which is why im not averse to the idea of bringing back gio or monetizing him to we can land a jovetic...i think im more in favour of the jovetic route..

forza juve!!
 

Red

-------
Moderator
Nov 26, 2006
47,024
#32
Very good player.

Still curious to see how he will be used as it's not immediately apparent the way it is with the vast majority of signings.
 

Jem83

maitre'd at Canal Bar
Nov 7, 2005
22,865
#37
When is the contract signing ?Supposed to be this afternoon right ?
Yep, that's what the reports said. Because Asamoah had to get back to Ghana at around 5 PM, so his contract is probably already signed, or he's doing that as we speak.

---------- Post added 15.06.2012 at 14:05 ----------

I like the player.

Wouldn't consider signing him a priority, though, so may look back on this as a waste of resources if Juve don't manage to get the CF they need.
All I know is, with so many games coming up, the MVP-trio is bound to be disrupted by injuries and suspensions at some point, and it is therefore my opinion that having both Asamoah and Isla will be very beneficial to us.

But yeah, we must get the top CF too.
 

mukumsplau

Senior Member
Jul 9, 2008
4,433
#38
Juventus New Signing Mauricio Isla – Under The Microscope

After spending nine years of his youth career in Universidad Católica, Mauricio Isla’s strong performances in 2007 U20 World Cup attracted the attention of talent scouts world-wide as he eventually sealed a move to Udinese. The Chilean made his debut for the Bianconeri on December 19, 2007 against Palermo. He cemented his position in the starting line-up in 2008/09 season as Udinese reached Europa League quarter-final. Isla played 32 times for Udinese in Serie A and was a regular starter in their EL campaign. Isla opened his goal account with Udinese in 2009/10 season, against Sampdoria. However, the season was a failed one for the Friuli side, as they finished 15th despite Isla raking up a personal highest of 8 assists.

Last season, he was one of the most vital players for Udinese as they waltzed to the top of the table in second half of the season. With two goals and seven assists, Isla cemented his position as one of the best wide-men in the peninsula. Isla made a strong impact in 2011/12 season as well but his season ended in February, after an injury against Milan. Udinese’s season imploded after his injury as they almost missed out on third spot which once seemed assured.

Isla was a regular in most of the under-age teams for Chile and he first grabbed attention by his regular starts during Chile’s campaign in 2005 U17 South American Championships. Isla was a star for Chile in U20 World Cup in 2007, when they clinched the third spot. He played a total of 585 minutes for his country, setting up his future Juventus team mate Arturo Vidal’s match winner against Portugal in pre quarter-final. In quarter-final, he was established as one of the hottest prospects in the world. The match against Nigeria finished 0-0 in 90 minutes but Chile mowed down the Africans in extra-time, scoring four times. Isla himself notched up two of those four goals. Eventual winners and an Argentine team containing Sergio Aguero, Mauro Zarate and Angel di Maria proved too strong for Chile in semi-final. However, Chile did finish third even though Isla had to leave the field against Austria in the 3rd place match with a concussion after the hour mark.

Isla became a regular in Chile national team during Marcelo Bielsa’s reign as the South Americans played an exciting brand of football, finishing second in CONMEBOL zone. He was a starter during Chile’s 2010 World Cup qualifiers and started every game as they went out in pre-quarter final of World Cup.

Isla brings variety to the table. Like Martin Caceres, the Chilean can also play in a number of different positions – right winger, right wing-back, right-back, left-back or a central midfielder. His transfer also means that the 3-5-2 formation is here to stay. Stephan Lichtsteiner never looked comfortable in that formation while Caceres was inconsistent. Isla, on the other hand, has already excelled in a similar position in Udinese and can slot in seamlessly. Last season, there were times when Juventus looked like they could use some width and Isla with his pace and craft can provide that. He would need to improve his crossing as currently he has a rather poor statistic of delivering 17 successful crosses out of 72 attempted last season. With national teammate Arturo Vidal already in the squad, he will have no problem in settling down either.

Conte’s Juventus has often faced some criticism for being too “narrow” and over-relying on central midfielders for attacking thrust. Milos Krasic and Eljero Elia, arguably the fastest and most crafty wingers in the squad were both frozen out because of their lack of defensive work-rate. The players preferred by Conte – Giaccherini, Estigarribia and Pepe were all hard workers and lent balance to the side but they lacked intelligence to make things happen on their own. Isla, on the other hand, has shown time and again that he can act as a game changer when the situation demands. He is also a hard worker so fitting into Conte’s system will not be a problem.

Mauricio Isla, while not being a high priority requirement, is a quality player and will allow Conte to switch between a 4-3-3 and 3-5-2 more efficiently. Like Asamoah, he just turned 24 and already has 122 Serie A matches under his belt. Only worry regarding him is if the last injury he suffered with Udinese will affect his playing style or not. If it doesn’t, then Juventus are all set on the right wing, for atleast 3-4 years to come.

With these two signings Juventus now have one of the best, if not the best midfield in Serie A, with enough depth.
 

Jem83

maitre'd at Canal Bar
Nov 7, 2005
22,865
#40
In my opinion, we should now sell Krasic and Elia, but still keep Estigarribia. The latter will never demand a starting spot, but he's a good lad, he trains well, he's professional, and if we get a terrible run of injuries next season, with Pepe and Isla both injured, it wouldn't hurt to have Estigarribia.
 

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