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We f***ing suck. Willian being good tonight again, but that is all.

Is Douglas Costa generally poor for Brazil? The Venezuelan right back is easily getting the better of him

 

Yeah never been too impressed by him for the national team. although last game he was good.

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new Simeone

 

 

Bassedas takes the helm at struggling Velez Sarsfield

 

Former Newcastle United and Argentina midfielder Christian Bassedas has made his first step as a coach by taking charge of struggling Argentine club Velez Sarsfield after seven years as their sporting director.

 

"We're ready to fight every object that blocks our way. We must pick ourselves up and become Velez again," Bassedas, who was a part of Velez's most successful team in the 1990s winning the Libertadores Cup and the Intercontinental Cup, said at his unveiling this weekend. "I dream of seeing the stadium full again and the fans identified with the team... It's been a very tough year but Velez is always Velez," added Bassedas after taking the reins from Miguel Angel Russo, who resigned last week.

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Argentina could be in some sort of trouble if they don't win tonight away to Colombia. 2 or 3 points from opening four games can really make it hard for them. Especially since they play Chile away after this as well. Realistically they could have 2 points from the opening five matches with Brazil, Uruguay, Bolivia, Ecuador to play away from home which would mean they'd probably have to go pretty much unbeaten from home after that.

 

Although tbh, I think they'll pretty much go on a rampage when Messi is back and I think we're in bigger trouble than them.

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Be amazed if they win tonight. Colombia coming off the back of a good results plus injuries and playing in the Caribbean is going to be awful.

 

Big night for Ecuador tonight, if they can win away again, versus relatively weak opposition, they're pretty close to getting to the finals, as daft as that sounds, because of the high number of points they are more or less guaranteed to gain in Quito.

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Be amazed if they win tonight. Colombia coming off the back of a good results plus injuries and playing in the Caribbean is going to be awful.

 

Big night for Ecuador tonight, if they can win away again, versus relatively weak opposition, they're pretty close to getting to the finals, as daft as that sounds, because of the high number of points they are more or less guaranteed to gain in Quito.

 

:thup: Ecuador, Chile, Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay win and Argentina is going to be under some serious pressure :lol:

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Uruguay were impressive tonight, especially on the counter. Chile move very fast in attack but it exposes their defense massively and leaves them vulnerable. Godin put in a strong shift on both sides of the ball I thought.

 

Tough result for Chile, but this match had some extra incentive for Uruguay after Jara-Cavani during the Copa.

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Ecuador ffs. Impressive result from Uruguay as well. We were quite shit for 60minutes or so and then average for 30 and managed to win 3-0 because we have an individual named Douglas Costa. Was excellent when moved to the right-hand side. Neymar was kind of lost in his #9 role and his old self when it comes to frustration.

 

Some very big games in March. Ecuador wins at it could very well mean that one of Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Colombia or Uruguay doesn't go to the World Cup.

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Qualifying Ecuador >>>>>>>>>>>>> Tournament Ecuador.

 

Wide open though, can't not love how competitive it is over there. Can see Colombia missing out, from what I saw of the game last night they were pretty poor, made Argentina look like a well balanced team. Uruguay just need to stick in and wait for Suarez to come back.

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Thought I'd whack this in here instead of the Other Club Transfers.

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/35446493

 

Alexandre Pato: Can Brazil forward revive career at Chelsea?

 

Alexandre Pato was once one of football's most prized assets before the Brazil forward's star waned and he became one of the sport's unfulfilled talents.

 

The 26-year-old Corinthians player has now moved to Chelsea on loan until the end of the season - aiming to rise again.

 

Blues interim manager Guus Hiddink insists the move is not a "gamble". Here, BBC Sport analyses whether the Dutchman is right.

 

Wasn't Pato meant to be the next big thing?

 

Rumours were rife at the beginning of the 2008-09 season that Chelsea's new Brazilian manager Luiz Felipe Scolari was doing everything in his power to convince an 18-year-old Pato to join him in west London.

 

The World Cup-winning coach had witnessed the teenager's breakthrough in his homeland with Internacional, his goalscoring debut for Brazil, a one-in-two goal record during his first Serie A season and a call up to the squad for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.

 

'Big Phil' was sure Pato would be an instant success at Stamford Bridge. The only fly in the ointment? AC Milan were not prepared to sell a striker set to dominate Europe's scoring charts for the next decade and beyond.

 

With hindsight, the Rossoneri would regret not cashing in as they had done with Ukraine legend Andriy Shevchenko two years previously, as Pato's promising career stalled dramatically at the San Siro.

 

What went wrong?

 

Pato was named Serie A Young Player of the Year at the end of the 2008-09 season after ending the campaign as AC Milan's leading scorer. However, during the following season and while still a teenager, his body began showing the strain.

 

A series of muscle injuries, including pulled hamstrings, cost him a place in the Brazil squad for the 2010 World Cup - although admittedly the exclusion of Neymar - then at Santos - was the bigger story.

 

Even the Rossoneri's famed Milan Lab struggled to get Pato fit for any length of time and when an £11.5m bid came in from Corinthians the Italian outfit decided to cut their losses.

 

The Sao Paulo club that gave the world Rivellino - who starred for Brazil on their way to World Cup glory in 1970 - was on a high after winning their first Copa Libertadores title in 2012 and following it up by beating Chelsea in the Club World Cup later that year.

 

Pato joined Corinthians in January 2013, but was out the door again within 12 months. His nadir being a failed panenka penalty (a slow chip down the centre of the goal) in a Copa do Brasil tie against Gremio, the fierce rivals of Pato's first club Internacional, that was saved by Dida, his former AC Milan team-mate.

 

What has he been doing lately?

 

Pato has spent the last two years on loan across the city at Sao Paulo FC, the initial deal taking the attacking midfielder Jadson, now in China with Tianjin Quanjian, in the opposite direction.

 

While the strike rate has dropped to a goal every three games, Pato has been able to avoid any serious setbacks with injuries during his time with the Tricolor.

 

The price tag - a joint record fee for a Brazilian club along with the £11.5m paid to Boca Juniors, also by Corinthians, for Carlos Tevez in 2005 - was continually used to undermine Pato's efforts in his homeland.

 

Undoubtedly the Brazilian has lost some of his pace after his time on the treatment table and the fear factor for opposition defenders has waned, but a new-found mental resilience has kept Pato amongst the goals.

 

Even with partisan crowds forever on his back, the forward refused to shirk responsibility and was always looking to get a shot away.

 

Could this be a good deal for Chelsea?

 

Sao Paulo FC tried to make Pato's move to their Morumbi stadium permanent but Corinthians were keen to recoup more of the £11.5m they paid for the player than their neighbours were willing to offer.

 

Chinese outfit Tianjin Quanjian met Corinthians' valuation and offered the player a salary in the region of £10m a year.

 

Pato refused the move, much to the chagrin of the Corinthians board, but has since signed a contract extension with the Brazilian club.

 

The hope on both sides is that following a successful six-month stint with Chelsea a permanent move will be forthcoming that not only suits Corinthians but also the player's ambitions.

 

The 26-year-old believes he has unfinished business in Europe and Chelsea welcome a striker out to prove a point.

 

Pato has received criticism in Brazil for not capitalising on his talents and not showing enough passion on the pitch.

 

For example, the traits his Chelsea team-mate Diego Costa demonstrates when tangling with opponents are lauded throughout South America.

 

Pato is a different animal, but the goal remains the same - prove the doubters wrong by sticking the ball in the back of the net again and again.

 

As I've only seen clips here and there of Pato recently, has he still got that lush burst he had when at Milan, or have the injuries taken their toll so it's not there for him like he used to have? Obviously he won't have lost that amazing technical ability, but when he had that combined with his pace there was a reason why he was meant to be the one.

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No Thiago Silva, Marcelo, Lucas or Firmino for the Copa America side.

 

I liked the idea of bringing seven players that will play in the Olympics. Only problem is that they're horrible but at least Coutinho is back despite Lucas and Firmino being left out in favour for Ricardo Oliveira and Hulk.

 

At least David Luiz has been frozen out, been an absolute embarrassment for the national team lately.

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