MLS - March 4 - Chicago (Away)

[moogoo]

Exactly. Talles is not a striker and they all know it. And he can’t even make it through a game in a position which he doesn’t have the tools to play.

you're contradicting yourself.

if they all know talles is not a striker, why do they start him there? if we all know thiago only has one talent of pace, which is good on the wing, why doesn't he play there?

because talles is the "best we have" to play the #9? if so, then why move thiago to the middle two games in a row? it doesn't make sense unless they are TRYING to make talles a #9 and are forced to make the change to try and create more chances by getting talles on the ball more - which he does, on the wing.

 

[JayH]

you're contradicting yourself.

if they all know talles is not a striker, why do they start him there? if we all know thiago only has one talent of pace, which is good on the wing, why doesn't he play there?

because talles is the "best we have" to play the #9? if so, then why move thiago to the middle two games in a row? it doesn't make sense unless they are TRYING to make talles a #9 and are forced to make the change to try and create more chances by getting talles on the ball more - which he does, on the wing.

I said it’s not an experiment. They know he’s not a striker. They currently are looking for one. They have been trying various fixes as a place holder. Not surprisingly he is not working as a striker, so they are moving players around, also as a make shift. It’s not a plan to try to convert Talles to a permanent striker. This is not the Taty plan. You don’t have to believe me, but that is not a contradiction.

 

[Kjbert]

Isn’t it just that they hoped it would work and are giving it until the summer window?

 

[SoupInNYC]

I said it’s not an experiment. They know he’s not a striker. They currently are looking for one. They have been trying various fixes as a place holder. Not surprisingly he is not working as a striker, so they are moving players around, also as a make shift. It’s not a plan to try to convert Talles to a permanent striker. This is not the Taty plan. You don’t have to believe me, but that is not a contradiction.

Would also add that they want to get Talles on the ball. They probably thought they could do that with him at the 9, but with Pelligrini playing there, they haven't been able to (Pelligrini has played a total of 3 passes to Talles across the first two games). So they move him to the wing and Thiago to the center to change how they attack the space and to get Talles on the ball.

When Santi returns, everything should change in terms of how this team is capable of progressing the ball. I'd be curious as to what that looks like with Talles at the 9 with Santi at the 10. I would imagine that gives this current roster the best chance at scoring goals.

That doesn't mean they're trying to convert Talles to striker, but trying to get by until they can bring one in that is quality enough to start there.

 

[SoupInNYC]

I also want to dive into something that's been bothering me.

NYCFC did not convert Taty to striker. He already was one. That's where he played prior to arriving at NYCFC.

When he came on, David Villa was occupying the 9 and so when Taty came on while DV was on, he played on the wing. Then in 2019, Taty was the striker until Heber came on and then he occasionally played on the wing with Heber at the 9. Then there were multiple games where Dome played Taty and Heber as dual strikers.

Taty was not a winger, but he was capable of playing there if needed.

 

[JayH]

I also want to dive into something that's been bothering me.

NYCFC did not convert Taty to striker. He already was one. That's where he played prior to arriving at NYCFC.

When he came on, David Villa was occupying the 9 and so when Taty came on while DV was on, he played on the wing. Then in 2019, Taty was the striker until Heber came on and then he occasionally played on the wing with Heber at the 9. Then there were multiple games where Dome played Taty and Heber as dual strikers.

Taty was not a winger, but he was capable of playing there if needed.

Good point.

 

[Kjbert]

Is there any evidence Pelligrini is any good?

 

[moogoo]

Is there any evidence Pelligrini is any good?

i think he has potential. he's only 22 and has had a turbulent last few years with no real stability. i think the club is giving him a solid shot to show his stuff, hence the 1 year contract. if he shows he can contribute, he'll stay on longer. but otherwise, i see the club letting him go.

does he have the ability to go super star like Taty did? I don't see that and I personally do not think it will happen. But i DO think he can be a solid contributor and option for squad rotations and filling in on the wing or midfield for injuries. I think that is pretty valuable.

 

[ZYanksRule]

Is there any evidence Pelligrini is any good?

No evidence from his tenure in MLS, but he was on a garbage Miami team and is just now getting his first chance with a good team. I'm willing to give him time. This is where MLS's forgiving format is good for developing players -- we have the time to give him a chance to grow into the season.

 

[KevinJRogers]

i think he has potential. he's only 22 and has had a turbulent last few years with no real stability. i think the club is giving him a solid shot to show his stuff, hence the 1 year contract. if he shows he can contribute, he'll stay on longer. but otherwise, i see the club letting him go.

does he have the ability to go super star like Taty did? I don't see that and I personally do not think it will happen. But i DO think he can be a solid contributor and option for squad rotations and filling in on the wing or midfield for injuries. I think that is pretty valuable.

He's out of a position as a 10, although he could likely grow into a passable backup there. Really, he's a winger or attacking midfielder. He may even be able to slot in as a false 9 in the same way you've been mentioning O'Toole and Jasson. I think Pellegrini may be better than either of them in that role.

The kid wants to attack. I love that about him. He just lost so much quality playing time getting derailed by the move to Inter Miami and then getting shuffled off to USL League One. But he wasn't a €7.5 million transfer value for nothing. He's still at €3.5 million.

 

[moogoo]

He's out of a position as a 10, although he could likely grow into a passable backup there. Really, he's a winger or attacking midfielder. He may even be able to slot in as a false 9 in the same way you've been mentioning O'Toole and Jasson. I think Pellegrini may be better than either of them in that role.

The kid wants to attack. I love that about him. He just lost so much quality playing time getting derailed by the move to Inter Miami and then getting shuffled off to USL League One. But he wasn't a €7.5 million transfer value for nothing. He's still at €3.5 million.

You just said he's out of position as a 10 and his real position is a winger or attacking midfielder. Is a 10 not an attacking midfielder? or did you mean he's more of an 8 (i.e., box to box midfielder).

He could play a false 9, but based on the limited time watching him play, I think otoole and jasson have better ball control/dribbling skills than pellegrini and we all know Jasson is the king of drawing fouls. That's why I think they would be best as a false 9 and combine with the wingers and the 10.

I agree that the last few years have not been good for his development. He's got 1 year to prove himself to the club. I hope he can and become a solid contributor for us. If he can break out as a starter .. more power to him. I'm all for it. I personally just don't see it happening.

 

[Kjbert]

I happen to agree with all of the above. I’d rather watch him on the wing than Jasson.

But if they didn’t have names on their jerseys - not sure I could tell the difference.

 

[moogoo]

I happen to agree with all of the above. I’d rather watch him on the wing than Jasson.

But if they didn’t have names on their jerseys - not sure I could tell the difference.

for some reason jasson draws more fouls though, while pellegrini, given the last 2 games, tends to just get knocked off the ball. not sure why that is!

edit: i have to say, while our squad isn't a stone cold steam rolling type squad at the moment, I am excited to watch our boys develop. i don't know about you guys but watching sands and taty turn into key players for us was like raising my own child! lol.

 

[VernonJohn]

for some reason jasson draws more fouls though, while pellegrini, given the last 2 games, tends to just get knocked off the ball. not sure why that is!

edit: i have to say, while our squad isn't a stone cold steam rolling type squad at the moment, I am excited to watch our boys develop. i don't know about you guys but watching sands and taty turn into key players for us was like raising my own child! lol.

Moogoo ga ga

 

[KevinJRogers]

You just said he's out of position as a 10 and his real position is a winger or attacking midfielder. Is a 10 not an attacking midfielder? or did you mean he's more of an 8 (i.e., box to box midfielder).

He could play a false 9, but based on the limited time watching him play, I think otoole and jasson have better ball control/dribbling skills than pellegrini and we all know Jasson is the king of drawing fouls. That's why I think they would be best as a false 9 and combine with the wingers and the 10.

I agree that the last few years have not been good for his development. He's got 1 year to prove himself to the club. I hope he can and become a solid contributor for us. If he can break out as a starter .. more power to him. I'm all for it. I personally just don't see it happening.

I just meant he's not a playmaker at the 10. Distribution doesn't seem to be Pellegrini's strong point, to say the least, which is probably why he's never really played there. He's a shooter.

In fact, he's not even a midfielder. Or at least it's not his natural position. He's on the books as a left winger, kind of the mirror image to Gabi, who's a right winger with attacking midfielder as his secondary position.

Anyway, I'm beginning to wonder if Pellegrini could be one of those guys who's a perpetual tweener. Plenty of talent, plenty of physical ability, can play just about everywhere but he's not a perfect fit anywhere. He hasn't logged enough minutes in serious competition yet to be sure, so the jury's still out.