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Post by buddha on Dec 22, 2014 15:34:38 GMT 8
I really enjoyed the 2014 Suzuki Cup. Thailand fully deserved to win. They've really set the bar for us.
Here's to a great year. Bring on 2015!
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Post by buddha on Dec 20, 2014 5:54:23 GMT 8
*sigh* C'mon people. There's no need for insults. Nobody really wins on the internet.
Look at the Indonesian guy here... he's giving us some love. It's time we have a lovefest.
It's Christmas afterall!
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Post by buddha on Dec 17, 2014 16:31:57 GMT 8
Have you guys seen the stats on the 2nd leg?
POSSESSION Thailand.........Philippines 48.7%.........51.3% SHOT ACCURACY Thailand.........Philippines 31.3%.........60% TOTAL PASSES Thailand.........Philippines 356...........375 PASSING ACCURACY Thailand.........Philippines 73.9%.........74.9% PASSING ACCURACY IN OPPONENT'S HALF Thailand.........Philippines 63.7%.........63%
(http://www.affsuzukicup.com/2014/finals.html)
At first glance it seems that we shouldn't be at the losing end because we seem to have the game under control especially when it came to passing & possession. But there are many things in football that cannot be quantified. For instance, the quality of the final pass to Thawikan and his ability to shield the ball before quickly lifting his head up to pick his shot. The fact that he had the presence of mind to look up speaks volumes of his quality. You can't put a number to that.
Or the fact that when you study our heat map it becomes obvious that our passes & possession play is limited to our defensive & middle third.
POSSESSION IN & OF ITSELF DO NOT WIN MATCHES The key, it seems, is in transitions. The team that can take advantage of space when possession changes (whether it's defending your space or attacking your opponent's space) as fast as possible with minimal mistakes stand the best chance of winning. What we witnessed in Rajamangala was a masterclass in quick transitions.
THIS IS WHERE DOOLEY COMES IN Post-modern thought on transitions in football appear to be something that the Germans have mastered - from Bayern to Dormund to Die Fußballnationalmannschaft. From Klinsmann to Loew to Klopp. In fact, the current US Soccer curriculum pays special attention to transitions.
I believe this is something Dooley could imprint on our football culture. I admit I once thought Weiss was the Messiah who could get us zipping the ball around with aplomb like the Germans but instead our football under his watch was at best blah and excruciating at it's worst.
Dooley's first game in charge of the Azkals was a shock to the system after the tepid, stilted football of Weiss. It was like a page off the US Soccer curriculum. The 4-2-3-1. The ball played out from the back with patient possession. The explosion into space at moments of transition. One touch football. Beautiful raking diagonal passes finding free runners in open space.
While the national team's performance isn't up there yet at least one thing's clear: the coach has a strong vision of how football should be played and he is laying down the foundations of a beautiful football system.
Keep the coach.
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Post by buddha on Dec 10, 2014 8:55:25 GMT 8
Here's my two cents for those planning to take in the atmosphere at Rajamangala Stadium. I worked and coached in Thailand for 8 years and Rajamangala was my favorite because it was nearest to where I lived and so I was a regular at the stadium. I have a lot of good, good memories of that stadium (once, in that very stadium, my high school team was invited to a three-team derby and we beat the other Thai team 14-0 only to lose 1-0 to the Inter Milan Academy team). GET THERE FOUR HOURS EARLY Don't worry, there's plenty to do. 1. You can head up to the FBT store across the stadium on the otherside of the Ramkamhaeng road. That store is a footballer's paradise. Take your time and browse around. Around the corner there's the Grandsport shop, another local football brand. 2. Or you can buy snacks or a meal at any of the many food stalls and kiosks outside the stadium. Find a good spot where you can eat your food while watching the locals play futsal on the grounds outside. 3. You may want to take a leisurely walk around the stadium so you can get your bearings and figure out the entry and exit points. AFTER THE GAME Be prepared to walk. So the match has ended & the Azkals are on their way to the finals! The place will be swarming with people jostling for a taxi. You may try to hail a cab at the "back" of the stadium although I would advice against it as it might not be as safe as going back along the main Ramkamhaeng road. You have a snowball's chance in hell in catching a cab. So walk UP Ramkamhaeng road (not down towards Sukhumvit) as the taxis will be coming from that direction and you'll get past the scrum of people and increase your chances of getting a taxi. Have fun!
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Post by buddha on Dec 6, 2014 23:48:41 GMT 8
Oh man.
I wouldn't want to be anywhere near Rajamangala on game day.
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Post by buddha on Dec 6, 2014 23:37:33 GMT 8
If Amani did simulate to get his opponent sent off then, man, that's not something to be proud off. Any video clips of the incident available?
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Post by buddha on Dec 6, 2014 23:31:27 GMT 8
Ooooh, but I just realized the Thais are so pissed at Aguinaldo!
What REALLY happened?
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Post by buddha on Dec 6, 2014 22:49:05 GMT 8
A good result. Well, not exactly ideal but it could also easily have been worse. We had a game plan and stuck to it.
Our work rate was a pleasure to watch. Bahadoran was an Energizer Bunny on the left flank tracking back many times to recover possession. Tireless. It typified the whole team's work ethic and commitment
So it's off to Bangkok! Our boys will love Rajamangala. Excellent playing surface, great atmosphere. It was my spiritual home for 8 years.
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Post by buddha on Dec 6, 2014 18:17:06 GMT 8
Will Dooley be going with his trusty double pivot in the middle again tonight?
Dooley's set-up (the 4231) and his philosophical approach (quick transitions coupled with intelligent ball circulation) mirror the current US Soccer curriculum looks to achieve.
Interestingly, PFF technical committee has been exploring the possibility of using the 4231 as a default formation from the junior national teams all the way to the senior team and is slowly working on a standard methodology to develop our own style of playing.
How Dooley is getting his players to play could be a window on how our future teams would look like.
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Post by buddha on Dec 5, 2014 22:24:56 GMT 8
You're right, paulino19. I do over-think things AND over do things. I've also been known to burn things in the oven.
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Post by buddha on Dec 5, 2014 15:34:17 GMT 8
I just read an annoying article by SunStar, where former national team player Ali Rojas Go said that the Azkals have to play a perfect game against Thailand. Go also suggested that the Azkals have to have a compact defense and go on the counterattack ... BS. paulino19, I too read the SunStar article of Ali Go. Now I am not acquainted with Mr. Go but I find your vitriol interesting. For instance, later into your rant you equated the phrase "compact defense" with "parking the bus." The term "parking the bus" IS NOT a tactical approach. No coach goes out to say, "lads, today we park the bus." That phrase is simply a sarcastic DESCRIPTION used by fans to describe the phenomenon where a team resorts to packing the area around the goal with players as a cynical way of denying the opponent a goal-scoring opportunity. I believe the compact defending Mr. Go was talking about simply referred to the restriction of space between the playing lines which in turn compresses the effective playing area. As a result, it becomes harder for the opponent to exploit space. This was something that the national team too often neglected in the match against Vietnam when the gaps between the midfield line and defensive line became painfully obvious during transition phases. As a result we were being stretched thin and Vietnam ran rampant through the gaps with no players to close them down. So when Mr. Go was saying that the Azkals need to play "almost perfect" he is referring to the need to clean up and correct minor errors in our game such as the lack of compact defending. Nowhere in the article was Mr. Go suggesting the we should regress to playing cynical, ultra-defensive football. What Mr. Go was simply saying is that we need to keep our lines compact especially during the defensive phase and then hit the opponents on the counter. That's just his opinion (Mr. Dooley might opt for another approach) but the fact is, he does speak sense. Going all out on attack might not be the smartest thing to do with the AWAY GOALS rule in place. The fact that Mr. Go was suggesting that we adopt a counter-attacking approach is in no way underestimating or belittling the abilities of our team. Counter-attacking today is no longer what defensive-minded teams in the past used to do which is to defend deep and then hit long balls forward and pray it lands on the head of your striker ("direct football" or "route one football"). Modern counter-attacking is now an essential weapon to have in any team's arsenal as it is used to draw the opponent in and exploit the space they leave behind with quick, precise passing. Real Madrid and Chelsea under Mourinho, Borussia Dortmund with Klopp, and Bayern Munich under Jupp Heynckes are not out-and-out attacking teams (unlike Arsenal, Swansea, or Villarreal). They are proactively counter-attacking teams playing decisive, surgical football. So in considering the context of Mr. Go statement that "Whoever takes their chances will win the game," I suppose he is referring to this kind of precise counter-attacking game and not the stale, stagnant counter-attacking football the national team used to play. Mr. Go is calling for smart, tactical football. You see, any coach/player/fanboy/fangirl/bandwagon-jumper worth their salt know that you keep your shape compact during defensive moments and then spread wide when transitioning to attack (counter-attacking). It has nothing to do with parking the bus and long balls. So that's why I don't understand why Mr. Go's suggestion to adopt a compact defense coupled with incisive counter-attacking should be considered male bovine fecal matter.
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Post by buddha on Dec 1, 2014 11:40:44 GMT 8
cjeagle, my man!
El Pibe captured my imagination. He was a classic #10. Remember Matt Le Tissier... ooh baby, don't get me started on Le God! And then there was Jan Molby at Liverpool with the body of an elephant and the grace of a ballet dancer although the one player whom I can really wax poetic about is Juan Roman Riquelme. Talk about underrated!
In today's result-driven football climate, systems and tactics change very rapidly and coaches gravitate to the modern sleek footballer with speed, skills, brawn, & high market value. They forget about the thin/fat/strange-looking/ungainly/tall/too short/risk-taking player in midfield who conducts the game with twinkling feet.
Ferenc Puskas was short, fat, and exclusively left footed. I doubt any club or scout today would give him a second look!
If football is the beautiful game, then these are the guys who run the beauty parlor.
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Post by buddha on Nov 30, 2014 13:43:42 GMT 8
Pretty much these are the same people who crucified chot Reyes and the Gilas Pilipinas basketball team. Killed other peoples enthusiasm by posting negative thoughts. Yanking like they are the experts. U know the media, they ride on these kind of people and make news. If you are not bothered, then thats good. But me, it is pissing me off. As for me, I've seen da light. Praise be! I've been BORN AGAIN! I used to be a football snob too. Oh yes. Then it dawned on me that agonizing over opinions here on USAPANGFOOTBALL, on FB, on columns, on blogs, on toilet walls, were a waste of precious cranial space. More than a decade ago, all that we (myself & the other silly fools ranting on the old RP football sites) wanted was to get the public talking about Philippine football. If that could be done we would hail it as a major accomplishment. And now that that's happening I have the gall to be offended? I get offended because I can tell the difference between a handball and a ball-to-hand or why the corner flag has to be exactly 1.5 meters tall? I get offended because I can tell my engaches from my trequartistas and false 9s? Fact is, we WANT the newbies to jump on the bandwagon. How else can a newbie learn about the sport if not to jump right in and get his feet wet? The newbie might not know anything at first but he'll learn as he goes along. But first, he has to jump in and we have to allow that - even if it means negative comments and enthusiasm that fizzes out. So you see, my friend, negativity on mainstream media or on social media sites is just water off this old duck's back. I've been born again and one day you too will see da light.
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Post by buddha on Nov 30, 2014 11:18:16 GMT 8
A lot of fake football fans in social media right now, most of them are newbie fans. Discrediting / blaming coaches, fingerpointing, feeling expert... Lol, i just dont know what to say. One thing that bothers me though, is that the bandwagon jumpers will watch the Vietnam game, see that we're not going full throttle, or playing to the level of the first two matches, and not understand the tactic behind it because they're not paying attention at all. Then all the comments to the news articles following the Vietnam game will be filled with stupid, senseless remarks from people who can't tell the difference between a football and a watermelon... Help me out here, but why again should I be bothered by "newbie fans" & "bandwagon jumpers?"
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Post by buddha on Nov 30, 2014 10:15:13 GMT 8
Where can I get decent match stats of the Phils-Vietnam game?
I personally thought we weren't that bad. The coach had a system in place for this particular game and the players stuck to it. As a coach, you couldn't ask for more.
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