5 Game Gauntlet Summation, Or: Stuff

By: chris | October 4th, 2007

The Calcio Gauntlet

Sept 19 Dynamo Kiev W 2-0
Sept 23 Juventus* D 2-2
Sept 26 @ Fiorentina D 2-2
Sept 30 Inter L 4-1
Oct 2 @ ManYoo L 1-0

Overall? Not all that wonderful. It’s still the first week of October, so it’s certainly no time to foreshadow the final chapter of the campaign, but a few tweaks here and there are needed or this season could get highly frustrating.

Anyway, Liverpool lost to Marseille. Rangers thrashed Lyon. Celtic beat the reigning champs. Olympiakos beat Bremen. Real Madrid drew with a phallically challenged team of demented lepers. Big teams are losing also, so it’s better to lose to ManYoo than, say, Dynamo or Sporting. Or Parma. (That’s code for “must win”)

* - I’m sure there will be a person or two saying “losing to Parma isn’t the end of the world, they’re not that bad.” Even thinking like that is the end of the proverbial world. Roma can and should beat Parma, or else the first 5 weeks of the season meant squadoosh. Big teams don’t lose to Parmas, or at least don’t justify losing to Parmas pre-match. (yeah, this is me getting angry about something that hasn’t even happened yet - I feel like someone slipped me some estrogen)

There are a few silver linings. Most notably that Roma certainly deserved more than the 5 total points (out of 15) they got. However, we’re not exactly in the business of moral victories here, and in the end, it’s all about execution. I mean, getting the girl back to your place is nice, but the moment you throw on Coldplay to set the mood she’s going to start search for your rubber dildo and suggest a guy friend of hers who just got out of a tough relationship (presumably with Zach Braff) that you should “hang out with”. Getting there is only half the battle, it’s all about finishing the job.

So, from these five games and for the next few months going forward, here’s what we have learned:

Luciano Spalletti: Well, the guy doesn’t like to rotate. Or at least not yet. Whether or not he likes to sit on his thumb is another matter. But my word, give these guys a breather. Not only does it impact these 5 games (or 7), but it also makes players more susceptible to injury, especially this early in the season. He asked for two very good players at each position, he got it, now use it. It’s really that simple.

Injuries: Panucci, Taddei, Aquilani, Ferrari, Barusso, Andreolli…..

CL 06-07: Last year was an aberration. We knew this, now the rest of the world knows this. Chapter closed.

Simone Perrotta: At this point, Simone couldn’t score in the Red Light District. And for someone supposedly playing a “supporting striker” position, he’s not looking very striker-ish. What’s more, though, is how badly he’s missing these chances. That shot against ManYoo was closer to Antarctica than Kuszczak. At least putting some of these chances from the last 2 weeks on goal gives Roma another 4 points, and maybe another 6, just because the goalie was either hanging out near the bench or never going to save it. I almost hope he doesn’t get picked by The Don Doni so he can be sat by TGIP in front of a kid goal and told to score for two weeks straight.

Mancini: I mean COME ON. Look where the ref is on this non-call (2:02). Unfuckingbelievable.

Resumen Man United - Roma www.futvolblog.es 2/10/07
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Chances are that’s 1-1 right there. Yet another point dropped at the hands of a ref. Unfortunately, when you go to Old Trafford, you play against 12. That’s just how things are up there.

Finishing: It’s not just Simone. Nearly everyone is guilty. To the point where you wonder what is in the water in the Roma locker room. Is there a clause in everyone’s contract that they can only score so many goal? My word, men, it’s a big freakin’ goal.

Mauro Esposito: I want to see more of him. A lot more. I suspect he’ll get the start against Parma, or at least he should. Well, seeing how frightened TGIP is to give anyone coming off injury any time, he’ll probably see 3 mins and leave us wanting more, again.

Gianluca Curci: Maybe Doni getting injured wouldn’t be such a disaster after all. Kid seemed very composed for getting a last minute start in Manchester after last year’s result. I was impressed. Now, if he can speed up his progression a little bit I may live to see my 26th birthday.

King Alberto: More silver linings. If there is a time for him to go out, now is it. Two international breaks in the next 6 weeks, the hard part of the gauntlet is past, and Roma can get by with Pizarro & Friends for those 4 games in 10 days - including Napoli, Sporting, Milan and Lazio. Let’s face it, despite Napoli’s success, that list doesn’t look very daunting at the moment whatsoever. Now is the best time for King Alberto to rest up the groin sufficiently.

However, he’d better not come back too early, because the groin is one of those nagging injuries that seems to recur often, plagues guys for long stretches of time and keeps them from getting on the playing field and scoring. It’s the sporting version of genital herpes.

Death Of Defensive Depth: This team was healthy in the back for what, like 7 minutes? After patching together a back line to start the year, the patches have started falling, and the team is now missing even more defenders. Here’s what the depth charts in back look like:

RB:
Cicinho
Panucci (Maybe)
~~Cassetti~~

CB:
Mexes
Juan
Me
Rosella
John Charles

LB:
Tonetto
Antunes

So basically, no sure backups in the back, because you know it’s going to take an act of God for Antunes to get any meaningful pitch time soon. So what happens if someone goes down? Mancini moves to RB again, so he can do stepovers in front of Doni? Totti starts playmaking from his own 18 yard box? Switch up to a 3 man defense? DDR slots back? Ahmed Barusso truly becomes the next Michael Essien and starts playing CB like a raging bastard amid the drooling of the tifosi? Doni and Curci in net at the same time? Seriously, that’s asking for a disaster. This international break can’t come soon enough. (Remind me I said that when Donadoni starts a 5-2-1-2 against Georgia with Alex Del Piero as the lone man up top)

Christian Chivu: Oh, how we do not miss thee….
(2:37)

Completely amateur.

Formation: I love the 4-2-3-1. Love it. It creates fluid, pretty, aesthetic football. However, it doesn’t seem to be scoring goals. Or at least the players in their current positions do not seem to be scoring goals. Could we please see a two striker system one of these days? Pretty please?

Doni;
Panucci, Mexes, Juan;
DDR, Pizarro;
Lulu, Perrotta, Mancini;
Totti, Vucigol.

Works, no? Imagine Francesco dropping back to hold up the ball and scan the field while Mirko is already working the trap for a picture perfect Totti ball over the top, leaving nothing but air between Mirko and the keeper. Come on, Spalletti. Throw me a bone.

The Oompa Loompas: Seeing as how King Fuckhead has been taking quite a few minutes as of late, along with a few injuries and the emergence of Espo, I’m beginning to get a little worried about the lack of physical stature on this team. A lineup with Cicinho, Pizarro, Lulu and Espo is just asking to get steamrolled. Speed is nice, but it can only get you so far, especially on a team that isn’t all that physical to begin with. Having the flanks short is not all that bad, but damn, that is a collection of vertically challenged people if I’ve ever seen one.

Shedjool: It’s looking good from here on out. How many times have any of the big four or any true “contenders” high up in the standings have played each other yet? Exactly. Relatively clear sailing for a little while now.

Food For Thought

Two things:

I) Start licking you lips…now.

Several of Europe’s top clubs have been put on alert as Torinio have been unable to find an agreement with their star Alessandro Rosina over a new contract.

Inter, Fiorentina, Benfica, Roma and Olympique Marseille have all taken a fancy to the 23-year-old winger, who counts as one of the most coveted youngsters in Italy at the moment.

The Italian press are speculating that there are two major obstacles to a contract extension at the moment. Rosina’s people are said to be upset that the club are dragging their feet on a requested pay raise, while Torino president Urbano Cairo is refusing to cave into the demand that an 12 million euro buyout clause be included in the new agreement.

Rosina’s contract with the Granata runs until 2009, but he is expected to try to force a move when the transfer window reopens unless an agreement can be found.

You know Roma is interested. You know Rosinaldo is headed elsewhere eventually. We assume Roma has the financial stability to make such a move now. We also assume Rosinaldo would like to spend some time learning from Il Capitano before he rides off into the sunset (who wouldn’t?). This is really something to keep an eye on as we run up to January and the summer.

And would somebody politely tap Benfica and Marseille on the shoulder and ask them what the fuck they’re doing there? Thanks.

II) More reported Fred interest from Roma. A couple weeks ago this is speculation. But after Roma proved it couldn’t hit the team bus from the driver’s seat, it gets one thinking. Does Spalletti have his eye on some better finishing ability - regardless of position? Or is it more Mancini crap?* Could be. I wouldn’t be surprised with either at this point.

* - After that goal in Tuscany, I hope Jean-Michel Aulas started writing out a blank check.

Random De Rossi video to close out the day