Mahrez named BBC African Footballer of the Year - seventh in Ballon d'Or

Log in to stop seeing adverts

Status
Not open for further replies.
Micky said:
I was talking about the assist. I can't believe how little attention it has received.
Click to expand...

https://www.theguardian.com/footbal...reative-beauty-leicester-city-manchester-city

Jamie Vardy scored a brilliant hat-trick at the King Power Stadium, but of all the old steamrollering Leicester City title tropes to return on a sodden night it was the sight of Riyad Mahrez in regal, unimpeded form that will linger in the memory.

It is not often a football match is decided by a pair of near-identical cushioned backspun half-volley passes. But then, there are not many footballers quite like Mahrez.
Click to expand...
 
Micky said:
I was talking about the assist. I can't believe how little attention it has received.
Click to expand...
Rightly or wrongly, we've come to expect that kind of utter brilliance from Riyad.

I thought he benefitted massively from being able to flit in and out of the game on Saturday. When we were defending in our own half, Mahrez and Vardy had clearly been told just to hold a position, not to press too hard and to be ready to spring on the break. I think it took the weight of expectation off Mahrez and he relaxed into the game.

Some of his touches and link up play was ****ing sublime. When he gets the ball less often he seems to act more instinctively when it comes.
 
There's been a bit of comment about it out there in the real world. An Obs piece (Barney Ronay? I think someone here may have even linked to it) fairly did verbal wank over it. Not that Ronay could ever be accused of over egging, oh no.

If you watch the Mahrez assist you'll see he actually slows up, times his run so that he meets the ball as it lands. Then he cushions the pass/lay off. Passing on that surface was a bit of a lottery but the weight of Mahrez's pass was perfect. It was a Leicester goal, pure and simple.
 
yackandandah said:
...If you watch the Mahrez assist you'll see he actually slows up, times his run so that he meets the ball as it lands. Then he cushions the pass/lay off. Passing on that surface was a bit of a lottery but the weight of Mahrez's pass was perfect. It was a Leicester goal, pure and simple.
Click to expand...

One other thing to look at, when Fuchs got the ball, Mahrez and Vardy were both well inside the Leicester half. They broke really quickly and the pass from Fuchs to Mahrez was exactly where the recipient wanted it, all in all it really was a very good goal.
 
Fuchs is an excellent passer of the ball and he has vision. Sadly he's getting old, losing pace and unable to keep going for 90 minutes.
 
Robin127 said:
One other thing to look at, when Fuchs got the ball, Mahrez and Vardy were both well inside the Leicester half. They broke really quickly and the pass from Fuchs to Mahrez was exactly where the recipient wanted it, all in all it really was a very good goal.
Click to expand...

Yeah I feel it's Fuchs who's not getting enough credit.

Mahrez's touched pass to Vardy and the weighting on it, the way he slowed down the ball was sublime.

But it was a great ball from Fuchs. Really good. I've seen a couple of places saying Fuchs 'lumped it down field' to Mahrez, but it wasn't a hoofed out ball at all, it was a great pass.
 
The difference between a hoof and a pass often depends on who you support.

I love to see us under seige from tiki-taka teams only for us to then hoof- start a three pass attack and score. It reinvents, and revitalises, the game. You can hear the disgust from the advocates of the 'beautiful game', as their jaws drop and they stammer 'but but but'.

Thing is, until judges start awarding points for pass completion and possession, goals count equal no matter how they go in. Besides, for me, your classic Leicester goal (as in Saturday) is a thing of pure simplistic beauty.
 
yackandandah said:
The difference between a hoof and a pass often depends on who you support.

I love to see us under seige from tiki-taka teams only for us to then hoof- start a three pass attack and score. It reinvents, and revitalises, the game. You can hear the disgust from the advocates of the 'beautiful game', as their jaws drop and they stammer 'but but but'.

Thing is, until judges start awarding points for pass completion and possession, goals count equal no matter how they go in. Besides, for me, your classic Leicester goal (as in Saturday) is a thing of pure simplistic beauty.
Click to expand...

Exactly. There was no "hoof ball" involved in that goal. As Mahrez started his run he pointed to where he wanted the ball, Fuchs duly delivered.
 
Reminded me of Vardy's record breaking goal against Manure, except that it was Fuchs again who delivered the perfect long pass to Vardy.

Fuchs maybe a bit slow but with his amazing passes and long throws, one of which set up the King goal on Saturday, I think Fuchs should be treated the same as Mahrez, occasional mistakes but likely to produce enough magic in a game to make a match winning difference.
 
Mike - True Blue Tinter said:
Reminded me of Vardy's record breaking goal against Manure, except that it was Fuchs again who delivered the perfect long pass to Vardy.

Fuchs maybe a bit slow but with his amazing passes and long throws, one of which set up the King goal on Saturday, I think Fuchs should be treated the same as Mahrez, occasional mistakes but likely to produce enough magic in a game to make a match winning difference.
Click to expand...

Feck me, no idea where to start with that. You might just as well have said that Schlupp should have been in the runnng for the Ballon Dor.
 
I think I've just entered a very strange parallel universe

Jebus
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Log in to stop seeing adverts

P Pld Pts
1Manchester C  923
2Liverpool922
3Arsenal918
4Aston Villa918
5Chelsea917
6Brighton916
7Nottm F916
8Tottenham 913
9Brentford913
10Fulham912
11Bournemouth912
12Newcastle912
13West Ham911
14Manchester U911
15Leicester99
16Everton99
17Palace96
18Ipswich94
19Wolves92
20Southampton91

Latest posts

Back
Top