Yeah, we kind of went on a bit of a tangent.Originally Posted by Ivy
Yeah, we kind of went on a bit of a tangent.
At 'em, Ant!
No but srsly is it called a Formica table because it looks like ants on it from a distance?
<Insert Bill and Ted meme here>
FORMER FULL TIME KOOL-AID DRINKER
I have been busy as hell. But yes Giovinco is very, very skilled, and sees/reads the game well, attacks, a real great true 10 in my opinion. Size is the only real issue.
I am doing some business with a group of guys from Milano, and a bunch of them are Juventini. They love giovinco, But they are very excited for him. They told me about this being done, before this was official in Canada.
The only thing that I am concerned is that the team around him needs to be organized, or we will not be able to get the most out of him. I am afraid of something of that first year with JDG, were he was passing the ball into areas, were are guys should be, but were rarely in. That could frustrate the hell out of any player. But if he is up top with Altidore, and the two of them can get things going, with maybe one more , he could have enough to play with.
He could be by far the best player in the MLS. Bradley being up there as well.
Hi everyone, italian Juve fan here - figured I would let you guys know something about Giovinco, having seen him play for the past 3 years. Personally, I think he's going to do great in MLS.
He's a good player, he did really well in the '11-'12 Serie A season. After that, he came back to Juve where he had the unconditional trust of Juve's coach Antonio Conte. He played a lot, scored 11 goals among all competitions - which is not *too* bad, although he was accused of only scoring non-decisive goals - but went through a season of ups and downs.
Next season - with the arrival of Tevez and Llorente - he rarely played, and this season, even with the new coach Massimiliano Allegri, he got often relegated to the bench. So yeah, he's always been pretty much hit-or-miss during his time at Juventus; sometimes he would actually prove he's talented and has got great qualities, sometimes he was just.. a bit annoying and inconclusive.
Personally, I think he should play as a wing, I remember him when he was very young during his first period in Juventus playing there and liked him a lot. He has a pretty good technique, not exceptional, but pretty good. He's pretty fast and agile.
His physique has always been his problem though - Serie A is a very physical league and it was tough for him to play as an inside forward against defenders that were 30 cm taller than him. In Champions League he's been pretty much nonexistent every time he played - I can only remember his 3-0 goal in a memorable game against Chelsea (see? he mostly scored useless goals). If he had decided to stay In Serie A he would have still been a good player, probably not very good for the best team of the league (Juventus
), aiming at being among the best in Europe. I would have liked to see him play as a wing, but neither Conte nor Allegri tried him there - probably because they both stick to their formations which don't include wings. I still think he would have been better playing there.
But thing is, I also strongly believe that if you're not extraordinarily gifted (as Messi) it's hard to succeed in great teams in top leagues (although Serie A is getting worse and worse) with that kind of physique. His comparison with Del Piero and the demanding fans (people want players to be good from the start) we have in Italy haven't helped.
I don't really know MSL at all, but I think he'll prove himself to be a good player, worthy of the investment that has been made. He'll probably become the star of your team, he's still young and has many years of career ahead of him.
I'm happy for him because I've always kind of sympathized with him. Maybe because he lived 15 minutes away from my house.
Last edited by jabbronies; 02-08-2015 at 02:50 PM.
Giovinco is at the Leaf game : )
Moderator
If you do decide to adopt TFC as your MLS team of choice - welcome to the family!Hi everyone, italian Juve fan here - figured I would let you guys know something about Giovinco, having seen him play for the past 3 years.
Personally, I think he's going to do great in MLS. He's a good player, he did really well in the '11-'12 Serie A season. After that, he came back to Juve where he had the unconditional trust of Juve's coach Antonio Conte. He played a lot, scored 11 goals among all competitions - which is not *too* bad, although he was accused of only scoring non-decisive goals - but went through a season of ups and downs. Next season - with the arrival of Tevez and Llorente - he rarely played, and this season, even with the new coach Massimiliano Allegri, he got often relegated to the bench. So yeah, he's always been pretty much hit-or-miss during his time at Juventus; sometimes he would actually prove he's talented and has got great qualities, sometimes he was just.. a bit annoying and inconclusive. Personally, I think he should play as a wing, I remember him when he was very young during his first period in Juventus playing there and liked him a lot. He has a pretty good technique, not exceptional, but pretty good. He's pretty fast and agile. His physique has always been his problem though - Serie A is a very physical league and it was tough for him to play as an inside forward against defenders that were 30 cm taller than him. In Champions League he's been pretty much nonexistent every time he played - I can only remember his 3-0 goal in a memorable game against Chelsea (see? he mostly scored useless goals
I don't really know MSL at all, but I think he'll prove himself to be a good player, worthy of the investment that has been made. He'll probably become the star of your team, he's still young and has many years of career ahead of him.
I'm happy for him because I've always kind of sympathized with him. Maybe because he lived 15 minutes away from my house.
And thanks for the insights about Giovinco. I'm excited to see how he does.
Heroism breaks its heart, and idealism its back, on the intransigence of the credulous and the mediocre, manipulated by the cynical and the corrupt. ~Christopher Hitchens
They should give Giovinco a try in net.
This was a concern about of mine as well - but with Altidore, Bradley, Cheyrou and Perquis (and even Caldwell to a lesser extent) he should be surrounded by a core of player with enough pedigree that it should hopefully lessen the impact
Thanks for the comments, interesting to read. Welcome to our ongoing nightmare that is TFC
wow... Giovinco takes a bit of a shot at Serie A Culture
http://www.tribalfootball.com/articl...e#.VNbwx1qmTww
Well if he wasn't all in before, he is now!
Gio could pack his bags and leave tomorrow if he wanted to, although im sure that's not his intentions. He really seems like he does want to be here.
Not sure where you read that he "wasn't all in". He was always in from the beginning.
This is definitely worth a read.
http://www.football-italia.net/62349...ded-juve-talks
I never said or even thought for a second he wasn't all in. I meant if people had any reason to think that, he is clearly all in
Wow, I didn't realize Giovinco already had a wife and kid!
Very interesting article overall.
Last edited by Auzzy; 02-08-2015 at 07:52 AM.
“What will I miss about Italy? Certainly not the endless slow motion replays or controversy over referees."
Thought that was pretty funny, he's going to hate the refs here haha
Just got back from Sicily Visiting family yesterday, Thought it was awesome as my family members and locals all can't believe Seba is in Toronto! Most are Shocked at the $$ Seba will be making!
This signing has a massive impact in Italy and the locals will be keeping tabs on TFC moving forward!
Guess it mission accomplished for TFC and MLS then. Really MLS should be further rewarding sides that continue to drive the international presence of the league. Even if people are tuning in to see if TFC remains a train wreck or not it still bringing more viewership to the league.
Indeed.
The settlement process for his wife and kid is going to be really interesting. Assuming his wife is about his age. Its a bit different when you've got 2 or 3 and are in your 30's. Hopefully Bradley can help with this.
Hi everyone, italian Juve fan here - figured I would let you guys know something about Giovinco, having seen him play for the past 3 years.
Personally, I think he's going to do great in MLS. He's a good player, he did really well in the '11-'12 Serie A season. After that, he came back to Juve where he had the unconditional trust of Juve's coach Antonio Conte. He played a lot, scored 11 goals among all competitions - which is not *too* bad, although he was accused of only scoring non-decisive goals - but went through a season of ups and downs. Next season - with the arrival of Tevez and Llorente - he rarely played, and this season, even with the new coach Massimiliano Allegri, he got often relegated to the bench. So yeah, he's always been pretty much hit-or-miss during his time at Juventus; sometimes he would actually prove he's talented and has got great qualities, sometimes he was just.. a bit annoying and inconclusive. Personally, I think he should play as a wing, I remember him when he was very young during his first period in Juventus playing there and liked him a lot. He has a pretty good technique, not exceptional, but pretty good. He's pretty fast and agile. His physique has always been his problem though - Serie A is a very physical league and it was tough for him to play as an inside forward against defenders that were 30 cm taller than him. In Champions League he's been pretty much nonexistent every time he played - I can only remember his 3-0 goal in a memorable game against Chelsea (see? he mostly scored useless goals
I don't really know MSL at all, but I think he'll prove himself to be a good player, worthy of the investment that has been made. He'll probably become the star of your team, he's still young and has many years of career ahead of him.
I'm happy for him because I've always kind of sympathized with him. Maybe because he lived 15 minutes away from my house.
I did not see him as much as you, off course. But for me the problem is that he has the skills and talents of a true 10, when I have seen him he has looked very skilled, but because he is a true 10 and he plays in high traffic his size limits all of this including showing his skill. Correct me if I am wrong but at Parma away from Juve he played as a true 10 in a 4-3-1-2, and he was exceptional. Many said that he should not return to Juve, because his playing time would be limited. He returned to Juve thinking that he had proven himself.
Here's a thought I just had in my feverish, head cold state.
If Saba does well here and becomes a club hero/legend for being the driving force behind real success at TFC or if he and his family become completely enamored with the life style in Canada does anyone think their could be the potential for his son to possibly become nationalized and one day play for TFC or Canada?
I know it's a long shot, but if Saba finds success here and the adulation he seems to crave (I interpret that as a motivational driver in the man) could he decide to make a move to Canada permanent? Ala Danny D.
As much as he seems to love his native land, I get the feeling he is truly interested in a different sort of lifestyle that Canada could offer? He wouldn't be the first person to come here and not want to leave. Canada has a way of sucking people in.
/end of my feverish thought.
Sure, he played as a true 10 in Parma. But Parma plays in a completely different way than Juve. They don't attack and have the ball most of the time like Juve does, and mainly try to hurt in counterattacks. That made it much easier for him. When he was in Juve, he mostly played with his shoulders facing the opponents' goal (I don't know what the technical term is in english), constantly man-marked very closely. He was very limited in that position, considering how Juve played. His physique made it even more difficult to play like that. That's why I always hoped I could one day see him play (again) as a wing - he would have had more space to try and dribble opponents, which he's not bad at.
But the real difference imo was that in Parma he had lots of counterattacks. I think that a comparison with Sanchez is legitimate. He too was amazing at Udinese (that mostly scored through counterattacks) but had two not-so-great seasons with Barcelona - which has ball possession for 70 % of the game and is almost always attacking, trying to find ways to work around the other team's defensive line.
Saba could slot in very nicely for us then, since we tend to play off the counter more often then not. I mean we've never really been a possession based side, but our style is probably more to do with the fact that we've never really had the players with enough skill to play a possession style of game.
I don't know much about the MLS refs, but trust me, there's nothing worse than the constant accusations and waves of hatred referees get in Italy anytime they make even the slightest of mistakes (eg a millimetrical invisible offside, only noticeable with technology and sometimes not even with it). That's especially the case with Juve. We are the best and crush most other teams, but whenever there's a wrong decision in our favor made by the referee, most sport papers and websites and fans unilaterally attack us accusing us of always getting favors from the refs.. ignoring all decisions that go against us (that of course exist, but that nobody talks about because one nobody cares, and two we almost always win anyway). And they keep doing that until the next game (well I guess they have to talk about something when there's nothing to talk about during the week). So yeah, that's how it is here. To quote Buffon, Juve is the alibi of the losers.
Last edited by Dekost; 02-08-2015 at 09:23 AM.
The referee standard in MLS is terrible, they are just above amateur. I actually suspect that some amateur refs are probably more consistent than the tripe we're stuck with, but if Saba has good lateral ball skill he should suck a lot of defenders into committing fouls, of course with they way MLS defenders tend to lunge into tackles he could take quite a beating. I figure based on the dead ball highlights I've seen from Saba that he has the potential for 10 + goals from dead balls if he's fouled within his range.
I don't suspect anyone else will be taking direct free kicks except Saba, god knows we can't let Bradley near them.
Benoît Cheyrou (left-footed) and Altidore should also get some free kick chances. In fact, they should sometimes line up all three behind the ball, really keep the goalie guessing where it's going to go.
You are correct. Unfortunately, the league office has rewarded TFC by trying to thwart Altidore's move to Toronto in favour of New York, and by forcing management to trade excess DPs to rival MLS clubs instead of doing what's best for the organization.
Anyone else more concerned than excited? All it takes is a cold night in Columbus to realize that he's no longer playing under the bright lights. I'm hoping his wife adjusts and his English comes along quickly.. Bradley and co. have a lot of work to do to make Gio feel comfortable.
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