A visibly satisfied Roberto Mancini met the Sky journalists to speak about tonight’s game at the Stadio Bentegodi: “Tonight we played well, just like we did against Sampdoria. Maybe it is harder for us to play at home, maybe at the San Siro we feel more pressure. We will however try to improve because there were still some simple errors, but we played well. Hernanes? I think that tonight he played at his best position, but he can also play deeper in midfield. Kovacic and Shaqiri will do better in the coming games, especially Xherdan who is yet to adapt to reach his best form. Handanovic? He is one of the best keepers in the world. I do not kn0w what the current situation with his contract is, we will have to wait and see”.
Regarding the transfer market: “I think that very few players will be sacrificed, but sometimes you are forced to do things even though you don’t want to. It is hard to tell right now, but I am sure that next year’s players can do better than we have done this year. The defence did well, just like they did against Samp. At the end we fell back and left a lot of space for our opponents, but it was also thanks to Hellas Verona. It’s hard to play here given their recent run of form, but we did well and managed to do what we worked on during practice, something which is easier said than done. Santon and D’Ambrosio? Davide was a little tired and I can definitely say that Danilo did a good job tonight”.
The final part of the interview was about the upcoming derby and Gary Medel: “We have to think about winning the derby because of the importance of the game, even though they will surely see it the same way. Who will be in front of the defensive line? Medel does well playing in front of the back four, if we then add some technical ability to the team then we can’t fail to do well with all the quality we have in the squad. If we didn’t have Medel, we would be in trouble”.
Source: FCInterNews.it
Don’t be so convinced now mancini, we need a lot more
I have said this before, and I will say it again. Anyone who does not like how Medel plays or wants him to be sold, does not understand the importance of players who do the dirty work behind the more technical ones.
Completely agree.. he is one of the most consistent players this season.
He’s just very bad at times , there is a reason top clubs don’t have players like him . very conservative at passing and clumsy , the two yellow cards for guarin and brozovic could have been avoided
A simplification. Most of us have great regard for the role players
who allow more technical players to play with freedom. No one doubts their importance. Medel as a player is doubted.The notion of players occupying a defined and isolated role is outdated. Role players must contribute outside a narrow role. What makes a great defensive mid is versatility, composure and a balanced game. Medel possesses none of these traits. His inability to contribute anything offensively means we are effectively a midfielder down in every offensive play.
And despite having what amounts to an additional defender in front of the defense, we are still very easily scored against. Rather than Medel occasionally chopping-out an individual opposing play, the midfield should, as a unit, defend, and when in possession, bring the ball forward, also as a unit. In any good team the sum of the parts is greater than the parts themselves. In our current team, the defensive side of the midfield is only as good as Medel, and the offensive side is taken away from by Medel.
For a struggling mid-table side with a midfield incapable of structurally
defending in need of a stop-gap solution, a role akin to Medel’s would
be useful in their endeavor to survive. But its usefulness per se is a
failure of coaching/management. A team like the one we’re trying to build should be put together in a way that such a role would be redundant. The defensive element of the midfield would be expressed in the midfields’ structure, rather than depending solely on an individual.
The truth is we don’t have the personnel for Mancini to construct a strong, well-balanced midfield. There’s a reason Mancini is critical of
Kovacic’s lack of a defensive game, and it’s no surprise Mancini has
stressed the necessity of bringing in well-rounded, experienced
midfielders. Nor is it a surprise that Mancini looked to replace Medel
with a more well-rounded, versatile, deep-lying defensive mid.
You could have kept that post a lot shorter and say the same thing. “What makes a great defensive mid is versatility, composure and a balanced game. Medel possesses none of these traits.” I completely disagree with your last sentence and that’s where you lost me in your argument.