Internazionale Main Thread

[Dejan-Stankovic]

As a trequartista and one who's already had a season in Italy, I suspect he might be a better addition than VdV, Cajun. And if you were to loan him, he wouldn't get in the way of whatever plans you might have for next season. You have to remember that Hleb saw the way Moaninho's sides played in England - football-wise perhaps he made a very good choice.

Our football is currently looking good atm; a lot of passes on the ground and working the ball around which he'd fit perfectly into. I think we've seen the last of us hoofing the ball to the strikers. Like Lomba, I can't imagine Baptista threading and finessing through-balls to Milito and Eto'o even though he's got some good characteristics like power etc. We'd need a playmaker more in the ilk of Totti than Baptista, although Totti's don't grow on trees.

[Dejan-Stankovic]

What I actually cant believe is that we've wasted so much time for players who have preferred to make heart choices rather than professional ones. Hleb decided to have a move to the club he loves, whereas Sneijder might possibly go to Atl. Madrid as long as he remains where his new girlfriend is. Professional players indeed....
IMO Baptista should be the last of our options, but for some reason we always have to buy a Roma player, which in turn will most probably end up more frequently injured than available. With regards to technical abilities...sure he has strength, speed and can score goals(especially those much needed long range goals) ...but last I checked we were looking for someone capable of feeding Eto'o & Milito and I really doubt Baptista is the man for that. Sure he's better than nothing, but he should really be our last resort..
Today I've also heard about an interest in Riquelme. Now now, he is as slow as a snail, but boy he can give this team some much needed through passes along with the ability of controlling the tempo of our midfield. I dont know if he's available for free, but if not he'd still be cheap. Why not Baptista + Riquelme and end up spending less than what we were offering for Sneijder?

I honestly haven't seen Riquelme play since he was at Villareal but he must be about 30 - 32 now right? I don't know, I can't see this one happening. Though, playing exactly behind the strikers and with 3 midfielders behind him cleaning up and getting the ball to him, his skill and passing would outweigh the lack of speed. Also, extremely deadly from set pieces.

[maro]

Personally, I don't think you're looking for someone to feed Eto'o and Milito. I think you're looking for someone who's good in possession and can pull the strings, by which I mean dictate the tempo and stitch your play together for you. Playing that way will certainly create chances to slip in your strikers, but you're looking for a guy who can make lots of tidy passes and keep the ball rather than a guy who's especially good at making the killer pass. Of course, this isn't Baptista either, but that's a different point. I also quite like it when players decide that things other than football are more important to them - if Sneijder is desperate to stay in Madrid because it's better for him personally, then I think that's kind of admirable. And the same goes for Hleb. In fact, the same stuff comes up every time a player like Burdisso or Oddo or Pavluychenko says they don't want to go anywhere on loan - there are things more important than football and it's good for football to be reminded of that at times. The problem is that most tifosi treat the players as though they were part of a computer game - people who only exist in those 90-minute slots each week in which a game is being played.

[Lombardiamia]

Maro, I'm not merely saying that players should be robots. But certain decisions are questionable to say the least. Hleb flew back to Stuttgart because he was afraid to be tested in Italy and he had already succeded in Germany, therefore it seems to me like the easiest way out. Sneijder's decision is questionable too, since it's not like Madrid & Milan are that much afar from each other and I guess that a player's profession should be more important at this stage than an affair. It's not like she's his wife.
Anyway, what I find most puzzling is that we wasted so much of our time running after players who didnt consider their profession as a priority. Surely Hleb did tell Barca & Inter that he had no intentions of going to Milan, so why was time wasted after him? Even Sneijder. If his intentions were always those of staying at Madrid, irrespective of what happened to his carreer, why did he send his agent to clear financial issues with Real & thereafter to Milan to get the best deal out of Inter? It just doesnt make sense.
Anyway, at his point I would want Riquelme + La bestia.

[Totally FRANK]

Aren't we swapping Suazo and Baptista on a year long loan? I would definitely take that. He is more versatile than Suazo is, has more experience in the european stage and can also cover the attacking midfield position. As a replacement for Suazo,yes but as our first choice trequartista,no.

Maro, can he play as a trequartista? During the time I have seen him at Arsenal and Madrid I always got the feeling that coaches struggled to find a proper position for him to play. He doesn't score enough goals to be a striker nor does he have enough vision to be a playmaker.

[maro]

I know what you're saying, Lomba; I suspect, though, that while both of us would probably consider our professions one of our priorities, I doubt either of us would privilege the profession over our partner or our family. Frank, Spags has expressly said that Baptista's natural position is as a trequartista. It's precisely because he's more of a trequartista than a forward that we're looking to offload him - we need another striker but not another attacking midfielder. I think he'd complement Milito and Eto'o rather more than he complements Totti and Vucinic, though - because they both like to play short rather than to stretch things and so get in Baptista's space. Baptista's problem, I think, is that he's an all-round very good player but not a great one in any position. I would have thought that Pizarro was the player of ours that Moaninho would most want back.

[Lombardiamia]

I know what you're saying, Lomba; I suspect, though, that while both of us would probably consider our professions one of our priorities, I doubt either of us would privilege the profession over our partner or our family. Frank, Spags has expressly said that Baptista's natural position is as a trequartista. It's precisely because he's more of a trequartista than a forward that we're looking to offload him - we need another striker but not another attacking midfielder. I think he'd complement Milito and Eto'o rather more than he complements Totti and Vucinic, though - because they both like to play short rather than to stretch things and so get in Baptista's space. Baptista's problem, I think, is that he's an all-round very good player but not a great one in any position. I would have thought that Pizarro was the player of ours that Moaninho would most want back.

That sentence there is precisely what I think about Baptista.He can play in more than one role, but wont ever be defined as a striker,seconda punta or trequartista. I agree also that he's lost when he has players like Totti who take away the space he needs. IMO he is the kind of player who likes starting a run from distance, and conclude rather than looking for a one-two. He is a sort of individual player but unfortunately he's not that good to make a difference on his own, unlike say Ibrahimovic.
All in all, I repeat my stance. He's better than nothing but surely doesnt solve any of our problems.

P.S. Latest news in the Sneijder saga - His agent seems to have convinced the player to come to Italy. We'll await the next episode......

[Totally FRANK]

http://www.goal.com/en/news/1717/editor ... r-knocked-

I like how it he ends it, Most of the time Baptista's second touch is a missed tackle. Lol.

[Dejan-Stankovic]

P.S. Latest news in the Sneijder saga - His agent seems to have convinced the player to come to Italy. We'll await the next episode......

You've got to be kidding..

[Lombardiamia]

P.S. Latest news in the Sneijder saga - His agent seems to have convinced the player to come to Italy. We'll await the next episode......

You've got to be kidding..

Well those are the latest news. In a couple of hours, it will be said that Sneijder will remain in Madrid because his dog only likes to shit in Madrid...

[maro]

Why were Inter never linked with Dago?

[maro]

To be fair to Sneijder, he clearly already has a pretty good sense of what a pack of knuts Inter are.

[Lombardiamia]

Do you mean D'Agostino? Isn't he a deep lying midfielder? In that case Ledesma would have been a much cheaper option, though you never know with Lotito..

[maro]

No, no. I meant Diego.

[Lombardiamia]

Juve were after him for a whole year and at that point, we were still after Deco...

[Totally FRANK]

Why aren't we after VDV? He may not be the best player out there or the perfect fit for us but he would be better than nothing and he would sign for us in a heartbeat.

[red]

Juve were after him for a whole year and at that point, we were still after Deco...

Make that at least two years Juve were tracking him.

Thank fuck Inter didn't get him, because they would have been absolutely unstoppable.

[Dejan-Stankovic]

Rivas is out on loan to Livorno, Obinna is almost out to Spain so all that's left is Kerlon.

[Totally FRANK]

Rivas is out on loan to Livorno, Obinna is almost out to Spain so all that's left is Kerlon.

and Mancini. He may move to Genoa if they qualify for the Europa League.

[Messinterista]

EDIT - Added Internazionale Logo to the first post of this thread.

End of Internazionale Main Thread - Locked