Yes in typical black cloud TFC fashion he sucked for us yet excels upon his return to the Serie A. I bet his time here scared the shit out of him and he got his act together.
I was impressed by him several times here. His footwork was excellent, but as said before, he just couldn't adapt to the leagues style, and couldn't connect with the lower level of teammate.
I am quite shocked to hear the Man Utd link though.
thought he was pretty meh, ill be shocked if this comes true.
No longer a meme virgin.
Animals Eaten:
pig, cow, lamb, moose, chicken, quail, kudu, ostrich, kangaroo, octopus, alligator, rabbit, shark, springbok, goat, bison, boar, caterpillars, turkey, fish, lobster, crab, oyster, prawn, antelope, camel, eel, squid
the lolz!
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no, he didn't suck, but your teammates not being good isn't a legitamate reason for never passing in my books. Especially when you don't do anything useful on the ball yourself. I remember him on countless occasions having a man wide open with lots of space, but instead of passing to them he'd dribble the ball to them, draw all the defenders there with him, and then either give the ball to the other player after he'd gotten rid of all their space, or get striped of the ball himself. IMO he was just one of the many players who was here in the first half of last season that didn't belong here.
Bottom line is I'm glad he's gone, and that will not change no matter what team he ends up with in the future
Don't agree at all. He was a selfish ball hog that tried to do it all himself, and got beat pretty much every time. When he did get beat, he would sulk and pout, then tune out. Maybe he just thought that he was that much better than the rest, but the reality is he wasn't.
Let's not forget that he had a nagging injury even before he arrived. He had a wrapped thigh almost from day one and he was constantly aggravating it. Sure, he went down easy on occasion (and more) but there was no doubt in my mind that he was slightly hobbled.
He had skill of that there is no question.
He lacked judgment though. He was also supremely over-confident seeming to think that he would rip this league apart.
TFC took a flyer on a guy with a strong pedigree but thankfully TFC knew enough to cut him loose when they did even if the club took pity on him and said it was a recall.
He has potential. It will be interesting to see what he can do in a different situation.
Curse of Toronto.
I always thought he was good, was upset to see him leave but Manchester? Really?
Wake me up when Andy "Puyol Jr." Iro gets scouted by Barcelona.
I don't particularly buy this, do you think someone could realistically have trouble with the physicality of MLS then survive in Italy?
Not only is that league more skilled, it's also more physical. I know that's not the first thing you think of when you picture series A, but the defending is high quality and you can't deny the athletic quality is superior.
I'd argue MLS looks physical because that's primarily what it's players offer, but it's not as physical as any of the top leagues.
Is it really? The recklessness of the players in MLS is going to negate the skill of someone who's somehow going to excel in one of the best leagues in the world?
If you can deal with the level of play over there and the superior athletic ability, a few rash challenges in MLS is not going to stop you from being effective.
This has to be a joke.
"Outstanding form"?
He has 2 goals in 23 games at Torino since he left here.
"There are some people who might have better technique than me, and some may be fitter than me, but the main thing is tactics. With most players, tactics are missing. You can divide tactics into insight, trust, and daring." - Johan Cruyff
Now, I may be biased (I used to have Stevanovic as my avatar picture and continue to think that he's the most technically gifted player to ever play on this team), but I would sulk and pout as well when I'd get beat because no one on the team had the foresight to make a run into space. He always passed when there was an opportunity. You'd see him take on multiple defenders because there was no one else around him to take the ball. That's what made him look like a ball hog, I guess. I'd rather keep the ball, personally, but hey, what do I know?
Also, with all due respect to your interpretation of his skill levels, I'm more inclined to believe what Arsenal's scouts used to think of Stevanovic a few years ago and what all the top 6 clubs ready to bid on him (assuming this story is true) think of him now.
Why? Because he fell to the ground at the first sign of a challenge? God his workrate was shit here. £6m is insane. Has he changed that much?The 21-year-old was once likened to Cristiano Ronaldo by Arsenal scouts when they watched him developing at Inter Milan.
You're right, his workrate here was shit, and he's a sulky kid -- immature. He felt he was above this league. He wasn't getting any minutes in Italy, they shipped him here, he thought his team mates here weren't the best, so he didn't work hard. That's unprofessional, totally. But with that said, there's no denying he's very, very skilled.
As for whether he's changed, there is no decent-length clip on youtube, but a bunch of short ones. Check them out. I think he's worth millions. Maybe not six, but certainly no less than three or four.
People seem to have VERY BAD memories...he was a fairly talented kid who NEVER backtracked/defended and wouldn't pass the ball...I remember one particular game where he and Santos went in on several 2 on 1's, and he tried to beat his man BOTH times leaving a wide open Santos furious in front of the net and the coaches raging at him from the sidelines...He just wasn't a complete player...
Danger, I was only assessing Stevanovic based on his performance at our club, period. I wasn't assessing his skill levels. I don't buy into the theory that one of the reasons he failed to perform was because he was so much better than everyone else. He should have been able to make some adjustments. I do think that he very strong technically, I just don't think his head was in the TFC assignment.
^You think Manchester United brings in AMs or wingers with that kind of strike rate in the second division? (EDIT: I have no idea where he has been play at Torino.)
This is a set up. His agent must be owed a favour by that reporter or something.
He is almost always subbed out.
http://soccernet.espn.go.com/player/...anovic?cc=5901
Last edited by ensco; 02-29-2012 at 10:27 AM.
"There are some people who might have better technique than me, and some may be fitter than me, but the main thing is tactics. With most players, tactics are missing. You can divide tactics into insight, trust, and daring." - Johan Cruyff