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| Saturday, 18 August 2012 23:07 | ||||||||||||||||
Benfica 2-2 Braga tactical breakdownBenfica reveal known issues First things first: what a great start to the Portuguese league. An entertaining match, two teams aiming for the victory, uncertainty about the result, subtle tactical changes, one penalty and one sending-off. One can only hope this is but an appetizer for what's to come throughout the remainder of the competition.
On the other hand, Jorge Jesus seems to be set in his ways and his chosen eleven almost looked like a testament to his will not to give any fire power up. In matches as even as this, prudence would probably recommend a more balanced team selection (as seen last season, for instance), but Jesus was having none of that and went with Cardozo, Rodrigo, Bruno César and Salvio up front. This meant that Benfica were even willing to initiate their attacks with Javi García dropping back, almost transforming the team in a 3x3x3x1.
Braga, in turn, had a distinct notion of where and when to pressure, usually allowing any of the three players from the back time on the ball and then pouncing on Witsel (or any other player that might drop back), meaning that Benfica were finding it very hard to play out from the back. Peseiro seemed to have instructed his players to exploit the space behind Witsel (and the other four attacking players) and it worked a couple of times before the half-hour mark. One of Peseiro's qualities known to everyone is the amount of work dedicated to ball possession and combination play. Not only did Braga's back four seem quite comfortable on the ball, but we were also able to see how well the players move with the ball and in space. Furthermore, with Viana, Mossoró and Lima on the team, this is a side that can shift the ball around like few others and tire their opposition. Mossoró often moved towards the right, trying to create overloads for rookie Melgarejo (such an unfortunate first match for Benfica from the young prospect), who had little support from Bruno César. To make matters worse for Benfica, Lima would frequently move away from his (supposed) markers and create confusion about who should be marking him, keeping Javi García from aiding Benfica's recently appointed left-back. On the other hand, Jorge Jesus is known for his well-drilled set pieces, which have worked wonders in the past, particularly in these sorts of matches. Tonight's match offered perfect evidence that even a free kick as simple as this one can offer a clear scoring chance, provided everyone knows what their job is.
The second half brought the sizzle that had been missing - the goals. It started out with Benfica's first, 49 minutes into the match. Given that they had been in control for most of the first 45 minutes, it was odd to see the away team a bit detached - and, at the same time, it showed the importance of keeping the lines close to each other.
Benfica were in front and the team from Minho looked a bit lost for a while. Despite a stuttering performance, maybe this was what the Eagles needed to up their game and take control of the match. Nevertheless, Benfica offered yet more evidence how hard they find it to dictate the tempo and lull their opponents into submission a few minutes later. As was often the case last season, the centre of the field remains unprotected and Javi García and Witsel are often overrun. Braga's goal was a good example.
After that, the match slowed down quite a bit, the exception being Rodrigo and Mossoró. The two remaining goals came from almost random situations, rather than as a result of carefully thought out plays or movement. Still, it is worth noting that, while Braga coped well with the numerical inferiority, Custódio, Viana and Amorim looked exhausted as the match drew to an end, no doubt due to their presence in the Euros. by Vasco Mota Pereira Vasco runs http://aboladovasco.blogspot.com/
and http://combinationplay.blogspot.com/, two blogs exclusively about football. |
Only qualifications are to be delusional and blind to the rest of the football world.
Luisao for president of the club ;)
3 out of 4 years Benfica has had a better squad? Yet the only year they won is when Hulk sat the whole year. Aimar cannot sit for one game or they lose.
Im sorry....your red glasses wouldf have suited you back in the 80's when Benfica was still the best team in Portugal....now you are the best team every 5 or 6 years.
I would tend to agree with JJ on that as on the Left we have Cesar and Nolito both of which can score more. So I am sorry if my ragging on his defensive abilities.. but it is LB the position is called Full Back.. and clearly he is not capable of defending, in any of the games I saw.. hey Gaitan has some upside going forward but he too is lousy defender so if they put him as a back it would result in the same and no one would be happy.
With that being the case a start on the B team or on loan on the wing is the best answer in his development. Right now we have too much fire power on the wings.. and he would just cloud it up further. I was strictly talking about him as a LB and see the upside on the wing as you have mentioned.
As for Nelson wanting to leave.. Forca you have to appreciate that most players that are young that come to Benfica are there to realize their dream at one of the Giants of Europe.. not saying that Benfica or Porto aren't clearly both clubs pedigree is high and that is why we are such a preferable destination. So this Portuguese want to leave.. is a narrow view.. if they are extremely talented then they want to leave.. that holds true for any in the Benfica line-up.
Luisao has been wanting to leave since he got there, and he isn't Portuguese.. right now things are real good for Benfica fans because most of our stars other Giants don't value to their market value.
So our superstars look at Cardozo he constantly leads the Liga in goals but no one wants him, same goes for Luisao, and the rest I listed early. This is great.. and hopefully will lead to some real trophies...
As for Uretta unfortunately that boy has been wasted.. as like you I saw huge upside and has always performed on loan.. but never given a full run-out for the Eagles.
His future is undecided on Uretta they might give him a Free Transfer.. as they have yet to loan him.. or put him on the B Team. Shame he was a talented youngster.
Pedro I appreciate your respectful comments.. but I will agree to disagree with you.. although Porto has certain players with potential to be greater through transfer fees on the pitch.. Benfica has had far superior squads in 3 out of the last 4 years. Although that Falcao Hulk team was on par with Porto's greatest team ever in the Mourinho CL era, I might even give them the slight nod because of that duo up front.
Now I don't mean to demean the Porto squads they always have formidable squads of the highest level, and their team spirit, and fan support are second to none.. so I hope you can appreciate that when I say that those Benfica squads were better... go through position for position with the main line-ups.. check out the stats.. and talk about potential.
Benfica shot themselves in the foot many a time with JJ and the Porto fans must love his big mouth when they throttle him and win. I know it upsets me so it must bring them great pleasure.
Anyways I appreciate your comments..you are spot on when you say so many Benfica fans have tried to run Cardozo out of town.. fortunately for us.. like the Euro Giant scouts.. they have overlooked him.. and even though he misses opportunities left and right he consistently scores at such a high rate. He has turned many of his detractors around.. and they have grown to love him. I have always been a fan of the Goaldozer.. and don't think he has ever been treated right at the club.. but he has always proven them wrong. Even for country he gets little respect even though his strike right off of the bench is better than those on it.
I see him finishing out his career at Benfica..
Pedro maybe you can list out your 12 players stacked against each other with the over for a defensive and offensive formation with an extra midfielder as I did.. that way we can see where the differences are.. as you saw this squad I had it 7 to 5 for Benfica in squad selection ratings.
Anyways thank you for posting it was very much appreciated.
And Orlando....Simao? really, I could call someone up tonight for my men's league team who's better than him these days.
Oh yeah...one more winger that everyone is forgetting about...Uretta...what are Benfica's plans for this guy?
Forca Malgarejo...I have faith in you!
I think we both agree that for most of the last 4 years Benfica has been the better squad.
Unfortunately we only have one trophy to show for it. Sorry Tacas do Turd do not qualify in my book.
So with the best team.. and I would qualify also that under JJ we have had probably some of the greatest squads ever in the history of Benfica and with some high quality Portuguese talent that never got a look in... all credit for this has to go to LFV for his assembling of these monster squads.
That is why the blame also has to fall somewhere.. and to see other managers with a quarter of the squads do so much better as in Paciencia's case was very disconcerting to me.
In the face of all this is JJ who stubbornly dragged out his leeches to drain the reds of victory. He has through his decisions, tactics and squad selections cost us many a game.
How great could this squad had achieved if not for his inadequacies.
They have a formidable team this year bar the LB position.. and yet it looks like once again it will be wasted.
Once again we will have a superior team to Porto and be honest you too think that Porto will win another title.
Now I appreciate the offensive side of the game.. my fav formation is the 4-4-2 but I think you have to have strong defenders and strong tactics to ensure the offensive thrusts do not leave you gaping at the back.
That is the problem with JJ..everyone on his squads are rewarded for charging forward even when it hurts the team.
There is a balance and JJ doesn't know how to find it.
We are quite lucky at Benfica because our best players are not being chased down by the Euro giants.. and it looks like the next two seasons could be quite profitable with the right additions and subtractions.
Look at our best Cardozo, Luisao, Artur, Nolito, Maxi, Rodrigo.. Garcia.. Cesar.. Aimar.. the only one they are chasing is Axel..
Paciencia with those players would equal great silverware.. this isn't a squad full of throw-ins like last years Sporting.. with Paciencia's attention to detail at the back.. a new LB.. and a great counter attack this Red machine could be great and could add a few big Euro scalps to our treasure chest.
I still am optimistic by this squad.. but JJ has a way of screwing up a good thing.. he has done so for the last 4 seasons.. and I see him continuing that streak. His title was also by the narrowest of margins with the strongest of squads.
Anyways I am sure to some it sounds like a broken record.. but the fact is it is constantly the same errors being replayed over and over.
You've said time and again that you want Domingos Paciencia to be our coach. What and make us into a defensive team, like Braga were (and still are)? There is no question that Paciencia did great with Braga, getting them to the Europa league final etc etc...but there is also no question that they were boring to watch! I agree entirely: JJ has to seriously improve the defensive side of his tactics, that is clear to see. But one thing's for sure, Benfica are exciting to watch and i would prefer attacking football over defensive any day of the week!
I also don't agree with some of your player ratings...Maicon is better than Garay? Oh really, is that why the likes of AC Milan were interested in Garay, and also why he's played for Real Madrid? Lucho is better than Aimar? No chance, he's only younger! I say it again, in terms of individual players we have a better squad than Porto, i agree with you on this. The reason they won the Liga last season is that they played as a team more often than we did, and have a better balance of defence to attack than we do and were able to get 3 points countless times by simply keeping a clean sheet and scoring a single goal. Yes much of this is JJ's fault, but not all of it, the players have to take some responcibility too!
I agree left-back is a major problem for us. Luisinho is the best option to play there at this moment. But i still think we must sign another left-back. Eliseu has declared publically that he would like to join Benfica, fine Eliseu is no Coentrao, but he is an experienced Portuguese international left back. On top of this his club Malaga has stated their interest in Saviola...why not do the obvious and arrange a swap deal for the 2 players (who are probably valued at around the same amount of money anyway). Surely having a good left-back in the squad is more important than having Saviola, who will be little more than a bench-warmer? I hope we get a left-back in because that's the last position to fill, perhaps one more centre back for cover as well. But otherwise the squad is looking strong, and more entertainment on the way for sure!!!
We can argue all day about the who's..
but currently Luis Martins who performed exceptionally last year in the few games he had is better at LB back than Malandro, you can also add Luisinho to the group far superior at the position.
I know I will get grief but I have always believed that Miguel Vitor is as good if not better than Garay.. yet has got very little support from JJ unless he was playing him out of position than he got some games.
Simao Sabrosa also wanted back.. and was quickly dismissed by JJ
Nelson Oliveira who had a more impressive U20 than Rodrigo didn't get a meaningful game until the second half where as Hot Rod got one in the first few weeks. He was expendable and sent off to Depor..
Now Nelson will never be a pure striker like Cardozo.. and he is not really a goal machine.. any of you Portuguese fans that think he is are deluding yourselves.. but he is the perfect set-up man.. and is not selfish.. he can become a worldclass number 2 striker.. and is also good off of the wing. So instead of overspending 14 mil at a position we have too many for already why not have given Nelson the chance to play off of that wing and providing the ammunition for both Cardozo & Hot Rod?
Even the inconsistent Djalo deserves to get some games in.. what was the point of signing him if he is to never play?
Then you have David Simao and others who also have impressed and are loaned out or on the B team.
The fact is none of them will ever get a headline if their own countrymen don't give them a chance. The future for Benfica is going to be bleak when the big squads buy up all the southern trash and keep them on their B teams. Then what will these fools do.. after eroding our academies of the talent
Gaitan stank for 2/3rds of last season.. but fortunately played very well in the CL.. same for Emerson.. and yet they get run out game in and game out.. I would love to see that patience and trust on some Portuguese kid who has even more potential.
Fact is the JJ's of the Liga are killing the future especially when we have had some very competitive and successful youth teams of late.
As it stands we still have talent around Portugal but if these ogres keep at it, pretty soon we will hit dry.. at the moment are hopes are with foreigners to nurture our youth players because they believe more in them than their countrymen.
I know in most other Euro nations the same is not true. In Italy the Italians get first crack at everything.. and are paid close to the top in the league.
Funny thing is we are producing more talented players than they are..
Also in my last post there was a typo it was JJ's head the fans were after and LFV kept JJ.. just to clear that up.
As for Benfica, for me this was an organizational loss.
We went into the season without a left back. Emerson became everyone's scapegoat, although he was adjusting to a new country, club, tactics, training and pressures. He is by far the best left back we have, yet he's being freezes out. Stupid.
Melgarejo was so completely out of his depth it was ridiculous. Both goals should have been dealt with.
JJ treated Braga as an also ran and it cost him. It was foolish to come out in a 4-4-2, although by all accounts Rodrigo did well. If anyone saw otherwise, please elaborate, because everything I read he did well.
I wonder if there was one Benfiquista that didn't scratch his head when he saw the lineup and formation. I have to wonder if the players themselves weren't surprised.
The fact remains that Benfica can not drop points at home to anyone. That means in the CL as well. This was a horrible draw for us. Period.
As far as Malgarejo goes, he cost us the game, but I feel terrible for this kid and hope his confidence isnt destroyed. He should be starting up the left for us. I dont think anyone here could name a player to score 10-11 at 21 years old while playing for a team like Pacos.
Orlando...I think your spot on with the refs, the emerson point, but what portuguese talent has JJ let get away or has gone onto better things since JJ has joined Benfica? Everyone always rips Benfica and JJ for the foreigner thing...but what portuguese player has left Benfica b/c JJ didnt give them a fair shake....Rubin Amorin? The way people talk about this portuguese player thing they make it sould like we've had Ronaldo type players sit on our bench for the last 3 years, and then they've gone onto star at Real Madrid, Barcalona, and Milan on free transfer.
My point is...who the hell is this great young portuguese star that should be in Benfica's starting 11 right now?
My pessimism has been spot on the last 4 years and I have come very close with my picks.. especially as it pertained to Benfica. Reality bites sometimes but if you want to win you have to make the proper changes.
As a couch manager with no qualifications but a love for the game.. I am a pretty good judge of talent.. unfortunately JJ has an eye for picking players that can cost us games.
This isn't pessimism this is REALITY and although you lips move similar to mine Andre you always take a left turn at the end because of the red coloured sunglasses that impair your vision.
Reality is that with just a poor of a manager as Benfica, Porto still won a championship last season with an inferior team. That is FACT.
As for Hairy Sam truth is I have Benfica TV and have yet to watch a minute of it. I also think I have been fair for the most part to any team in the games I have watched. I call a spade a spade.. when Porto smashed Benfica I praised them, when we lost to Braga I praised Braga.. and again have done so with this tie. I have a ton of respect for Braga much more so than most other posters on this website and definitely more than the Jester.
So when I say Benfica has had the best squad in the Liga in 3 out of the last four seasons it is because they have. Only the year with Falcao at the helm did Porto have a better team.
Take this season for example.... let us start from the back from the players that should be starters:
GK: Easily Artur is better than Helton
CB's Luisao is the best in the League and he is better than Rolando by far
Maicon is modestly better than Garay
Maxi is better than Miguel Lopes
Anyone at Porto is better than Malandro
So if you are keeping score at the back Benfica is 3-2 in the lead.
Let us travel forward..
DM there is no question that Fernando is the better of Javi
LW In my Opinion Nolito is the best in the league and his scoring record last season off of the bench proves it, James Rod is a close second.
In the middle Witsel is the greater of the two with Moutinho but I do like Moutinho.. very smart player.
Lucho Gonza is better than Aimar
On the right we will say Varela although he mostly plays on the left.. but we will insert him because he is the next best on Porto.. and he is better than Salvio or Gaitan.. although Salvio did look good against Braga we will see if he can get beyond his streakiness..
That leaves us up the middle.. Cardozo has been top of the scoring charts every season at Benfica even when Kinky Flowers was in charge and he scored off of the Bench.. his goal scoring is far superior to Hulk.. Hulk is more of a playmaker than scorer.. but without a Falcao.. he needs theatrics to gain goals through the PK.
Then you tke Columbia's unproven Martinez or the bust Klebber versus.. Hot Rod.. and considering the amount of games Hot Rod clearly is the more talented player.. and by his form early this season he is a star on the rise.. the Machado or Axe Man is one of the brightest stars in the Liga.. and was the Man of the Match in that tight game with Braga.. which Braga in the end in reality two own goals to tie.
With a favourable squad list for Porto and I even added one extra player to accommodate all formations..
The best 12 were Benfica 7-5 if you go 11 than the formations change and it could be 6-5 or even 7-4 for Benfica all squad wins.
That is REALITY Hairy Palms...
when you look back at the recent seasons with Luis, Coentrao, Ramires, Di Maria, in Prime Aimar, a Nuno Gomes that scored more goals off of the bench than Klebber to name a few you have to put down the Hatorade for a second and appreciate besides Falcao, Luisandro, Guarin, this is still Porto's best of the best.
The only difference from Porto and Benfica is the Managers and Porto clearly has dominated that race.. even now with Pereira they at worst are level but considering his easy win last season I would say that is an advantage for Porto.
Porto's worst Manager in the last decade is heads and shoulders above Benfica's best..
I railed on LFV's purchases for a long time but in the last 5 years he has really stepped it up and we now have the better squads even though we have spent less money. But now he has to get the manager position right.. instead of puppets and jesters he needs a BOSS.. that is the only piece missing in the puzzle.
We narrowly lost to Chelski last year and with a better Manager we could've won the CL last year.. or at least entered the Semis.. a great accomplishment..
Benfica have to take advantage of the talent in their stable at the moment.. the Liga should be an afterthought.. the CL should be late rounds.. but the truth is we are horribly mismanaged and the tactics are shock and awe.. the line-ups were atrocious.. especially in the CL we got very lucky to advance last season.. the players were too good to be held back.. and they advanced even in the face of incompetence.
This season evens proves to be brighter for talent.. Salvio is a vast improvement on Gaitan.. defensively even the only major lagging spot is at LB.. yet Luisinho & Martins will never get a true crack even though they are better..
This isn't pessimism this is REALITY.
With JJ's tactics.. and his squad selection.. we will not win the Liga.. and we won't go deep in the CL...
but the players can fight and can prove me wrong.. I am excited about the players... even though they need to buy or play the others who are 100 times better.
JJ's decisions already cost us a win.. how many dropped points before some of the other red coloured fools realize he is at fault.
All your Lowered Expectations are costing the rest of us to realize our dreams of success.
After failure last year in such an atrocious way in the Liga.. LFV was kept.. even though most called for his head.. after blowing such a lead. LFV needs to get the message that we no longer want his muppets and want him to up his managerial hiring record.
That is Reality.. if you want to look at the dim view Andre than you are the one that is pessimistic.. all I want to do is win in a 3 horse league that we have the best players in.
i could not get it, its beyond my understanding when it left morethan 25 minute to play J. Coseiro simply substitute Mossoro. the perpose of it only he knew. He was the cause of that draw. thank God that the lost he wanted for braga did not come through.
I will continue to criticise P. Bento for selecting Custodio and viana. custodio is too slow and he does not get any speed to chase a player any mid in the secod division can take his place. what a joke bento is doing to portuguese national team.
Surely this match has proved without a shadow of a doubt that Melgarejo is not a left back? Look how shakey he was defending, yet look how good he was getting forward. If a new left-back is not going to be bought in the end, then surely we must play Luisinho, a decent left-back, who is a defender by trade and would give much more defensive solidity than Melgarejo.
But that aside, let's not panic just yet. It was the first match of the season against a strong opponent who will finish in the top 4 again this season. I am also critical of JJ's errors, but i will also never jump on the Orlando "everything is a disaster and we got no chance to do anything this season" bandwagon. What is the point of pessimism like that, it gets you nowhere, quite literally. The important thing is to ENJOY being a fan of your team, never forget that.
This is a quality group of players, albeit with defence being the clear weakness again. If this can be adressed then we have a squad capable of doing great things this season. We have the won the Liga under JJ, and we can do it again. We have reached the CL quarter-finals under JJ, and we can do it again or even better. We just need to find a better defensive balance to our normal gung-ho attacking approach, and if that can be achieved I really believe Benfica could be one of the very best sides in all of Europe this season...the potential is always there with this great club!
The Foul on Beto's own goal... was anything but..
and if you wanted to get technical the shoulder charge on Hot Rod.. should've been a penalty also..
Benfica has benefited from calls in many a game as have Porto & Braga.. but this clearly was not one of those games.. if anything the second yellow early against Alan that should've been called could of made this game not even enjoyable..
Clearly you drank too much Hatorade before the match.. because you did not see the Luz.
Although I am a huge proponent of the 4-4-2 and its lack of use in the Liga and especially for the National team which it is never employed.. my criticism of JJ has mainly to do with his tactical inability to adapt to the squads he plays.. and his squad selection and management of his talent pool.
So Tactical Breakdown might not really apply to the Tactically Inept like JJ. Sorry Vasco.. I love your write-ups... you do an amazing job.. even when I disagree... I applaud you.
As Jon mentioned.. with the all offensive line-up for Benfica.. upon looking at the formations I saw it as a 4-2-4 since both Cesar and Salvio are not known for their defensive prowess.
To aggravate this further.. Malandro & Maxi both make extensive offensive forays.. which in this game caused many problems that fortunately were not capitalized on by Braga..
With all those attackers and Witsel also attacking beyond the half line it left us with only 3 at the back.. Javi.. darting to protect Malandro & Cesar.. Artur was left exposed many a time.. and even Luisao could've sealed a much worse fate.
Many love Garay but his decision making is very questionable as you mentioned Vasco.. and although he is a decent CB.. who would be much greater with a good LB and one winger or midfielder that tracked back.. the truth is Benfica has very little of those and JJ only promotes those that venture forward.. so the weak point is only going to get bigger.
I commend Braga greatly I have admired their team for many years.. and Salvador has done an amazing job bringing in the the BEST coaching talent.. especially after JJ who for me had one of their better squads and did less with it.
They are a hard working professional bunch that really understand the game.. their defense is exceptional always and is cool on the ball.. something Benfica & Porto is not.
The squad understands the game exceptionally and they foul perfectly.. they are always there with a leg, a tug, an arm, or a foul in the right position. Benfica on the other hand throws some harsh fouls at the wrong time... I commend Braga ffor that and their attitude helps in tight games with the refs.. while Benfica is emotional and over the top.. Braga got away from a second yellow early to Alan (who knows just when to throw that hard foul), and also later in the game with a non penalty called on the shoulder against Rodrigo, and the yellow on Cardozo when Beto grabbed his face from a low challenge wide from Cardozo.
We all agree the reffing in the Liga is subpar.. and to be honest until they get hardcore on fakes, and divers.. and video review after the match.. all these professional tactics are fair game.. so I don't fault professional squads that maximize their results.
Clearly when the ref replays this game.. he is going to see some glaring mistakes on his part on the Cardozo Yellow, the late disallowed goal that Beto botched.. off of his own defender for an own goal.. also he will see that even the Yellow card on Cesar which on camera clearly shows the Ref was not even looking in that direction was only a foul and not a yellow.. but by the time he looked over and saw the end result with a player rolling and the other sliding hard.. he signaled a yellow.
I feel sorry for the Ref because in the Portuguese league they are not protected.. there are usually 22 cheating players and only 3 eyes to try to catch everything. The Refs can't succeed and FIFA loves it that way.. so they can get the match-ups they want.
Anyways Braga had a great game.. and will continue to be dominant in this Liga.. they have a wonderful group of players and I see them being at the top once again. If Benfica falters they will have second spot.. if Porto fails also they will win the Liga.. comfortably with their hard work rate and team unity.
Benfica on the other hand have so much more talent on hand and at their disposal and even at home they can't make that count because of the tactical inadequacies of JJ.
Who in their right mind against one of the best teams in your League goes out and plays a full offensive squad like JJ.. who has repeated his failure of never winning his first match at the helm of the mighty red.
Now playing a 4-2-4 against the minnows of the liga is something I have always applauded although I have always said the 4-4-2 would suffice.. but last season saw us play a 4-2-3-1 against most minnows.. so it leads me to believe that JJ didn't learn which team to play defensively and which ones to attack.
Clearly Braga to play a more cautious line-up considering JJ has a losing record to them in his tenure.. but the losses haven't lead to any profound realization.. to everyone's amazement.
To prove how hard headed JJ is Emerson was his main LB and bar injury he played every minute of every game last season.. yet this year he is not bench worthy.. even though I have always said with his work rate he would be an amazing sub.. at LB.. so in his super stellar ability at spotting talent.. JJ has decided on Malandro as his key LB.. I am sure I will upset many with the name calling and to be honest Malandro is not lazy he is just defensively inept.
I have never seen a greater Own Goal than Malandro's classic.. not just a straight header in when he had loads of time to at worst poke it out with his toe.. he skipped the ball off the turf to score wonder goal of perfection.. beating Artur who was dumbfounded with that wonder strike.
To not make it look like it was a fluke.. he then proceeded to gain possession with time to clear and passed it to an open Braga player who easily threaded to the open attacker for Braga's only other goal.
JJ commented about his belief in Malandro after the game and vowed that he would become the next Coentrao.. maybe he got the word from another manager again that Malandro would be great just as he did with Coentrao.. when it was suggested by the NT boss on TV that JJ should play Coentrao at Left Back.. when JJ had Peixoto slotted far above Coentrao and it was only due to injury that JJ took the dare.. hoping for failure.
Anyways.. to look at the players..
Machado was excellent clearly the man of the match.. Hot Rod of course was one of the first substitutes out..
Cesar played horribly on defense making Malandro even look worse..
Salvio had a decent game.. and was even defending from time to time when he made mistakes.. this is a vast improvement from his earlier tenure of no defense.. and streaky play.. i still don;t think he is worth the money.
Cardozo challenged all match and should've been rewarded for his efforts with that own goal late.. as he pressured Beto into the error..
Enzo was average at best going forward..
Nolito their second best player last season off of the bench.. is still on the bench.. and showed again he plays better to start than coming in cold later.. he will again be a pain in JJ's side because he will score more goals than the starters.. and considering he defends better than Cesar, Gaitan, Perez, Salvio, Djallo.. you think that would be worth something.. not in JJ's eyes.
Aimar.. useless.. and cold..
Witsel.. was busy in both directions.. one of our top stars..
Javi was run ragged but did not break badly..
Maxi was great going forward hard on defense..
Luisao was rusty but good overall.. in neutralizing most of Braga's midfield control in the box.
Garay was caught wandering a few times.. was average at times good at others..
Malandro.. was a waste going forward and an albatross around the Benfica neck in the back.. Clearly at fault on both goals and cost Benfica 3 points.. even though unless they purchase someone.. he will be the go to guy for the rest of the season.
The only constant in JJ's designs is his absolute disdain for Portuguese talent.. and would rather go with failing foreigners than to try out a talented Portuguese youngster and give them the reassurances he gives to his southern failures game in and game out.
Benfica lost points again to start a campaign and are destined to lose on on the Liga & any Euro trophy.. because of their tactical ineptitude..
as predicted.. even though we have the most talent laden squad in all of the Liga.
Making Everything Difficult 4 - The Red Defense of Nausea
Coming to a screen near you..
Starring the Jangling Jester
The first half was pretty even with Braga dictating the tempo without really having much of a cutting edge in the final third. Benfica seemed to rely too much on counter attacks, but with both Viana and Custodio protecting the back four, it was hard to create clear cut chances.
In the second half, Benfica really pushed forward for an opening goal leaving their defense susceptible to Braga's swift counter attack. Both of Benfica's goals were really unfortunate(I feel bad for Melgarejo) but in the end, a draw was the fair result.
The ball did seem to strike Custodio's arm when heading towards the goal, so the penalty wasn't a poor decision. I just don't understand why Douglao was sent off. It was either a horrible mistake by the referee or Douglao may have said something to warrant his second yellow. Considering the quality of the officiating in Portugal, it was probably the former...
In the end, both teams had bad luck: Melgarejo's bizarre own goal & pass to Alan, and Douglao's red card. I'm a Benfiquista so I'm disappointed with the result, but in all honesty, neither team was clearly better than the other. Therefore, a draw seems like the fair result.
I was never a huge fan of Jorge Jesus and his almost naive attacking philosophy, so I'm obviously not pleased to see him stick to the same formation/choice of players. The offensive 4-4-2 may work against the likes of Vitoria Setubal at home, but it can be really dangerous against quality opposition with a strong midfield.
Melgarejo will get much of the blame, but I'd definitely blame JJ for his stubbornness. Benfica should always employ a flexible 4-2-3-1 against every team they face. The 4-4-2 is an endangered species these days. Hopefully JJ will realize this.