TheAdmiral wrote:I can truly and honestly say I didn't want Perez to sign Bale, but I guess he felt he had to go out and buy someone after Neymar joined Barca that same summer. I just don't think he fits too well. He CAN be an incredible player, but hasn't shown much - if any - greatness this season.
Would it really have mattered? His finishing - heading excluded - has become so mediocre ever since he had his otherworldly form in November/December. Irina must have done a real number on Cris, because ever since the break-up, he's become **** in several areas of the game by his standards.
No doubt Bale floating around doing nothing is unacceptable, but fans at the Bernabeu ought to get behind their players more than they have in recent times. Criticizing him after the fact is one thing, but booing players like Bale and Casillas (who have done so much for this club) while they're out there trying to win us games is unthinkable no matter how **** they play. It's no excuse but it's clearly affected their games.
Ancelotti's tactics this season seemed geared towards making our attacking midfielders look great at everyone else's expense.
- Ronaldo was less and less involved in build up, and even when he got his goal per game I was left feeling like he could be doing so much more. This is something I've noted even during his disgusting form towards the end of 2014. Hell, he looked like a more involved player when Mourinho was here, and looking back, those tactics were way too pragmatic for such a squad.
- Bale got frozen out for long stretches. Being pushed further up the field meant he had even less space than last year.
- Kroos provided stability, but he wasn't able to shine like we thought he would when we bought him from Bayern.
- The defense was erratic, and the lack of cover from the midfield only accentuated their holes
I still think there's no better coach available, but I hope Carlo learns from some of the mistakes this season. I honestly don't believe (aside from a strong DM) we need any additions this summer, but I feel like a shakeup to the frontline is probably on the cards.
