Fixed.Yeah, I agree. Something I haven't seen sinceKondogbiaLukaku
Pedulla is saying it will be a 30M + bonuses deal.
I'd assume so, but even if not, his dad's French, so he's EU anyway.Says he was born in Parma does he hold an Italian passport?
Yea, that is what I was thinking as well. He looks more of a wide forward than a pure winger. In that sense, he is similar to Mertens, Sanchez, or Auba, who have all played wide but not as a pure winger. They are forwards.Him not previously playing much as a striker doesn’t bother me. There are plenty of good strikers who started their careers as wingers (Aubameyang, Griezmann, Mertens). In general across many central positions there are players who started out on the flank and became top class after moving to the center of the pitch (Ramos, Schweinsteiger, etc).
You could add Keita Balde in the list who was turned from an inconsistent winger to a very efficient secondary striker under Inzaghi. And that's what makes me optimistic about this deal.Him not previously playing much as a striker doesn’t bother me. There are plenty of good strikers who started their careers as wingers (Aubameyang, Griezmann, Mertens). In general across many central positions there are players who started out on the flank and became top class after moving to the center of the pitch (Ramos, Schweinsteiger, etc).
If anything playing out wide has probably helped him develop his technical ability a bit more. He’s got the physique of a striker. The inconsistency is a bit worrying but he doesn’t actually have bad numbers for a winger. Clinical finishing would be my question because honestly I’ve really only watched him vs Inter. However the other facets of the game can be learned. You know who else couldn’t play with their back to goal when they showed up? Lukaku. You know who’s never been a clinical finisher in his career? Dzeko.
Players are basically always developing until their bodies start to regress, 24 years old is a good age for a position switch. He also has the perfect person to learn from in Dzeko. I think this is a good gamble.
Pedulla was always talking about a 30m deal for Thuram while Di Marzio claims deal could close for 25m.
like 12 hours ago: "Monchengladbach ask for 30 but Inter make encouraging progress for €25m deal"
Aaaaand it goes str8 into Raiola`s pocket.gds - The distance between the requests of Gladbach and Inter's offer has been reduced.
Correct. He already has double citizenship:Says he was born in Parma does he hold an Italian passport?
You're making uncorrelated comparisons, the aforementioned players had relatively high IQ, watch Thuram and you see he doesn't have that awareness or intelligence in terms of movement, when to pass, when to hold up play, when to shoot, etc. This is what separates a highly talented player like Felipe Anderson from a far less skilled and slower Thomas Muller. They're certain skillsets that can't be taught or learned and it has to do with game IQ, i guess they're inborn and honed over time. Lukaku was effective for us, more of a battering ram, point him in the right direction and he can be devastating, but notice against high IQ defenders he would be "dominated" time and time again.Him not previously playing much as a striker doesn’t bother me. There are plenty of good strikers who started their careers as wingers (Aubameyang, Griezmann, Mertens). In general across many central positions there are players who started out on the flank and became top class after moving to the center of the pitch (Ramos, Schweinsteiger, etc).
If anything playing out wide has probably helped him develop his technical ability a bit more. He’s got the physique of a striker. The inconsistency is a bit worrying but he doesn’t actually have bad numbers for a winger. Clinical finishing would be my question because honestly I’ve really only watched him vs Inter. However the other facets of the game can be learned. You know who else couldn’t play with their back to goal when they showed up? Lukaku. You know who’s never been a clinical finisher in his career? Dzeko.
Players are basically always developing until their bodies start to regress, 24 years old is a good age for a position switch. He also has the perfect person to learn from in Dzeko. I think this is a good gamble.
You're making uncorrelated comparisons, the aforementioned players had relatively high IQ, watch Thuram and you see he doesn't have that awareness or intelligence in terms of movement, when to pass, when to hold up play, when to shoot, etc. This is what separates a highly talented player like Felipe Anderson from a far less skilled and slower Thomas Muller. They're certain skillsets that can't be taught or learned and it has to do with game IQ, i guess they're inborn and honed over time. Lukaku was effective for us, more of a battering ram, point him in the right direction and he can be devastating, but notice against high IQ defenders he would be "dominated" time and time again.
It's possible Inzaghi can get the best of Thuram and use him with devastating effect against minnows in the same way Conte used Lukaku (although I'm doubtful), but don't compare him to the likes of Griezmann, Mertens, Ramos, etc. they're not comparable in any way.
Really interesting points.But then how can you measure a player's potential IQ?
Was Mertens a highly talented low IQ ball hogging winger for most of his career until Napoli sold Higuain and were forced to move in to the middle, and everything just clicked?
How would you rate Lautaro's IQ in his first season here? I remember him looked slow, weak, rash and didn't know anything other than shoot. Then suddenly we found him cutting through Dortmund and Barca's defense with ease. Then he went toe to toe with other great strikers in the league in term of goals?
Or Brozovic, what kind of performance could we expect of him when Spaletti moved him to regista given his perceived low IQ at the time?
Then look at the other side of the spectrum, we have players like Coutinho, Dybala or James who looked like the biggest brains on earth when they could play their favorite positions. But once you move them elsewhere, they're completely clueless, washed up. Where did their IQ just go?
With all these examples, is footballing IQ even a thing or is it just to term people assign to players to explain their unexplained abilities to play in certain ways? And if IQ is real, is it transferable to other positions on the pitch or is it specific to some styles of play?