Andoni Iraola [Midfielder]

Midas Mulligan said:
While at it, Shouldn't everyone who has crapped on him come here and take their lumps? For some reason, he has been a whipping boy to many here, with folks saying all sorts of things about his quality.

I'm damn glad to see he's getting some love. But it's still not enough. Ive heard plenty of Lampard/Harrison being the big difference, but it is easily AI who has changed the team.



(And ftr, Mix still never got to play with him at DM, and even last year they were a good pairing in the same side. Also, ftr, I never loved Bravo and credited him only with being better than AJacobsen.)
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I get what you are saying, but lots of the Iraola frustration was deserved. For the price and hype he just wasn't good enough at RB. It was never a question (to me anyway) of his quality. It was a question of physical stamina and speed. He just didn't have it for that role. CDM shows off his (abundant) quality without also showing off his lack of ability to sprint up and down the sideline all game.
 
FootyLovin said:
I get what you are saying, but lots of the Iraola frustration was deserved. For the price and hype he just wasn't good enough at RB. It was never a question (to me anyway) of his quality. It was a question of physical stamina and speed. He just didn't have it for that role. CDM shows off his (abundant) quality without also showing off his lack of ability to sprint up and down the sideline all game.
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I actually contended previously that since we didn't have a dmid who could do the job, he was filling (or trying to fill) that role already. That lack of football iq elsewhere in the squad and I believe some mild injury issues contributed to him not being a great fit at RB for us.
 
Midas Mulligan said:
I actually contended previously that since we didn't have a dmid who could do the job, he was filling (or trying to fill) that role already. That lack of football iq elsewhere in the squad and I believe some mild injury issues contributed to him not being a great fit at RB for us.
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Yeah, I think Iraola got exposed as a right back largely because we lacked an Iraola in the middle to keep the ball more carefully. Turnovers in the final third give a full back more time to recover than the turnovers we made more routinely in the middle or our own third before he was moved into the center.

If we had two Iraolas, I still might prefer Iraola at RB to Allen. Maybe.
 
Christopher Jee said:
Yeah, I think Iraola got exposed as a right back largely because we lacked an Iraola in the middle to keep the ball more carefully. Turnovers in the final third give a full back more time to recover than the turnovers we made more routinely in the middle or our own third before he was moved into the center.

If we had two Iraolas, I still might prefer Iraola at RB to Allen. Maybe.
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Very well said.

I just distinctly remember him picking the ball up and driving toward the middle of the field. Largely, it was because Jacobsen would just stand somewhere between midfield stripe and the box and there was no one actually pivoting.

I have always loved AI's crossing, but he would rarely get to do that because of what be was trying to do.

I recall early this year before we made the move to him at DM, there was at least one game where it appeared to me that we were pinching in our fullbacks and trying to have he an Matarrita act as our transition. It did not work well.

For evidence of what a difference it makes. Mata is awful about wandering into the final third and hanging out. Now that AI is in the midfield, it doesn't get caught out nearly so much. Having someone as intelligent as AI, who reads the game so well, makes everyone look better because they are free to play. That's part of why I would love so much to see Mix get time with him. When Mix has been given a free box to box role with the Nats, he's always looked really good.
 
HIS WATCH HAS ENDED...

He shall be moved to the former players.
 
Congrats to Iraola, manager of newly promoted Second Division side, CD Mirandes, for beating Sevilla 3-1 in the Copa del Ray. Game was on the background of my monitor and I had no idea Iraola was coaching until around the end of the game. The scoreline didn't even flatter Mirandes.
 
NYCFC_Dan said:
I don’t think he was well received when he first got here. Played RB and didn’t live up to the hype then was moved to CDM where he shined. We actually had a pretty damn good team back then, on paper. It’s so surprising that we have faired better of late.
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We're both correct, though I got the year wrong. In 2016 based on his play after the CDM move he won the Third Rail Unsung Hero award.

nycfc.exposure.co

Photos: Third Rail End of Season Party - New York City FC

Andoni and David are first to arrive.
nycfc.exposure.co nycfc.exposure.co
 
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I remember him in the CDM role and I thought he was very good there. Always overlooked but very good. Wish him the best!
 
I haven't been keeping up with Iraola's coaching career enough to anticipate something like this, but the recent Athletic article about Everton sacking Lampard floats him as a contender due to his work at Rayo Vallecano.
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