++ [ originally posted by walu_ex ] ++
Manchester United vs. Juventus
Preseason Friendly
N.Y. Giants Stadium
Attendance: +/- 79000
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Before we begin, I must point out a few things. Whenever walu_ex assumes the neutral position in a football game, there is no way in hell he will appreciate a victory achieved through opportunistic goals and dull, counter-attacking play. So, all of you that like Man U. Now is the time to run....
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Okay, so it's just us.
Stand Outs for Juve:
Edgar Davids: Good dynamic display at the heart of the Juve midfield. We football fans have become used to this....
Maresca: Showed a lot of character, mixing it up with Keane and closing down spaces.
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Areas of Concern:
#1: Just like Milan did against Barcelona, there was poor coordination between the midfielders and the strikers. Juve could have been more threatening if it attacked down the flanks. But they opted to use the middle more. The reason for this is that crossing the ball from the wings would be pointless with Ferdinand in the middle, as he is dominant in the air. The reason why Juve's attack had an off day, was because Trezeguet was hailing to hold on to the ball and lacked spark. Di Vaio seemed like he was out to prove a point, he started strongly but faded away as the game progressed.
In the second half we saw a 'tridente' attack. I am a big fan of this tactic, Zac used it all the time when Milan won the Scudetto. Alex and Miccoli did some good work, but again, the frenchman 's performance seriously compromised the whole team's efforts.
Nedved had some moments of brilliance, but needed to get himself more involved in the action.
Camoranesi has not started the preseason in the best way, and he seemed to be more concerned about issues off-the-court with Moggi and his agent. He needs to re-examine his tactical role.
Appiah is continuing to impress, he can do a little bit of everything, buthe doesn't read the game very well. All this will improve as he gets more playing-time.
Most of the problems we saw tonight are very common in this phase. When the players improve their physical condition, many other aspects of the team's play will rise sharply.
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#2 The Defence:
Appalling.
A total lack of concentration at times. Zambrotta was okay, but Birindelli and Pessotto did very little to convince Lippi they are worthy of a starting place.
But the centre of defence was even worse. They were slow to react to threats, and didn't close players down quickly enough. A little bit more speed would help... I know it's just a preseason, but Forlan came close to making it 5-1 when he missed a shot while the goal was empty....
I don't need to be reminded that this is just a preseason friendly, but now is the time to hone skills and improve tactical awareness.
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Positives:
Miccoli
This guy is going to force Lippi to adjust your tactics a little. He impressed me a lot, and I think he's going to be a key figure.
I can see him causing Milan, and other clubs a shitload of problems because his speed is formiddable, his technique is superior, his energy level is remarable, and he has a low centre of gravity, his balance is good and he doesn't let the ball escape from him easily....
Despite the exaggerated scorline, Juve did have about ten goalscoring opportunities, so rest assured that the result is not a true reflection of what was happening on the pitch.
Everytime Man U. scored, I turned the Tv off. I turned it back on just because I was curious to see how things were going in view of Sunday's super cup.
All in all, I was left with a feeling of comfort. It will be interesting to see how the team rebound from this catastrophe, I hope Nedved wasn't too badly hurt towards the end of the game...
Don't be too hard on yourselves, this is what preseason's are for. It's better to make errors and fix them, than achieve good results and cling to a false sense of security. Both Milan and Juve are far from ready for the new season, and from what we've seen so far nothing convincing about what to expect from the super cup has emerged. .