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Samuel Piette


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1 hour ago, dyslexic nam said:

Sam is not a winger/outside mid.  Simple as that.  I know he isn’t Henry’s 1st choice at CDM, but he just doesn’t seem effective on the outside.   

Didn't watch the game last night, but Piette is not really playing like an outside mid from what I have seen. Was it different last night?

Montreal have been playing with 3 midfielders, but the outside ones can barely be described as "outside" midfielders, let along wingers. Piette has found himself much closer to the touchline than he is use to (or comfortable with), but he has been playing as an "outside" central midfielder, if that makes sense....

Edited by Obinna
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17 minutes ago, Obinna said:

Didn't watch the game last night, but Piette is not really playing like an outside mid from what I have seen. Was it different last night?

Montreal have been playing with 3 midfielders, but the outside ones can barely be described as "outside" midfielders, let along wingers. Piette has found himself much closer to the touchline than he is use to (or comfortable with), but he has been playing as an "outside" central midfielder, if that makes sense....

It makes sense insofar as he isn’t bombing up the wing or feeding the attackers - but to me that is more about his unfamiliarity in that position.  You can’t play on the touch line effectively if you play like a central midfielder out there IMO - especially if your primary skill set is breaking up plays rather than attacking.  

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6 minutes ago, dyslexic nam said:

It makes sense insofar as he isn’t bombing up the wing or feeding the attackers - but to me that is more about his unfamiliarity in that position.  You can’t play on the touch line effectively if you play like a central midfielder out there IMO - especially if your primary skill set is breaking up plays rather than attacking.  

I guess what I was getting at was: he is not actually trying to play the touchline, right?

I agree with you for sure, Piette does not have that in his toolbox. Was he deployed in such a way where he was attempting to bomb up the wing last night?

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Plenty of different styles of midfielders out there.  Many who play out wide play to their strengths and will drift inside.  Even though TFC lost to Vancouver, Osorio looked great out wide vs them.  He has more technical ability to play out wide and can drift inside as well.  Unfortunately Piette doesn't have that diversity in his resume.

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Only watched part of the game but he did get down the wing a few times. I had a 'Was that Piette?!?' moment when he tried to deliver a cross into the box!

More frequently though he seemed to miss the opportunity to make the runs into space that his teammates were expecting from him. I can't figure out what type of role Henry has in mind for him.

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It almost feels like Thierry Henry is playing him strictly because he is a local legend and just an overall class act of a person.  Piette is obviously managing alright given that Montreal looks okay even with him playing out of position.  At times, I wonder though is there is a better option to play beside Wanyama.  Almost seems counterproductive to play Wanyama & Piette together.

Like I said, I don't think he's terrible out there but just below average for him.

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I feel badly for Piette. He is really trying but does not have the pace to play RM or as a #8. On at least 2 plays he simply could not get onto through balls down the flank...you could see the effort he put in trying to connect in vain. His forte is breaking up plays and making strong tackles. He is built to he a #6.

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I believe Henry stole this from the Chelsea playbook.  They're also playing Kante way higher up than he's ever played.  The idea being he can break up plays and steal possession higher up on the field giving Chelsea more attacking opportunities.  Instead of breaking up plays in their own half and have to build all the way up the field. 

I feel.... Piette is no Kante, and IMFC is no Chelsea.  Nice try, but no, its not working.  PIette can only play comfortably just ahead of the CB's.  I like Piette but he's been the weakest part of the Impact from the beginning of the season (just behind is the lack of a real #9).  He's really good at what he does, but he can't compete with Wanyama or even Maciel at the moment.  Unfortunately, playing the best 11 means Piette would be on the bench.

 

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1 hour ago, Bison44 said:

It makes me wonder about Henry...he keeps trying to jam a square peg into a round hole.  

Could he end up as yet another in the long list of star athletes who were unable to transition to becoming successful managers/coaches?

His only other season as manager (Monaco) was a total trainwreck.  However, he only got the job after the season started and didn't really get a chance to construct the squad as he would like.  So perhaps he deserves the benefit of doubt as to his coaching capabilities.

Henry has been on the Impact job for ten months now and as others have mentioned, this roster is unbalanced and could really use a proper #9.  I'm sure the pandemic has made player recruitment more complicated as well.  So perhaps Thierry will get a long leash to try and get this sorted out.  

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  • 1 month later...

Is it just me or does anyone else think that Henry moving Piette all over the pitch and making him more involved in the offense will make him a better player in the long run.  I dont get to see Impact games as much as the other 2 CDN teams, but I was impressed with Piette going forward tonight.  Kind of like the opposite of Rusty who used to be able to create some chances and he had it coached out of him, Piette seems to be adding more aspects to his game, other than just a destroyer.  Still only 25.....

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22 minutes ago, Bison44 said:

Is it just me or does anyone else think that Henry moving Piette all over the pitch and making him more involved in the offense will make him a better player in the long run.  I dont get to see Impact games as much as the other 2 CDN teams, but I was impressed with Piette going forward tonight.  Kind of like the opposite of Rusty who used to be able to create some chances and he had it coached out of him, Piette seems to be adding more aspects to his game, other than just a destroyer.  Still only 25.....

Piette is actually surprising me, I didn’t think he had any attacking skills in him but he doesn’t look bad. Hit a nice volley with his left foot too. 

I don’t see him playing this role with the nats obviously but at least he’s playing every week with Wanyama taking his defensive mid spot. 

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I was thinking the same thing watching the game last night. I was also thinking how much the opposing defenders must hate having him up there in an attacking position because he still presses and harries the guy with the ball relentlessly if he is nearby.   It is like he still acts like a def mid when it comes to that part of the game even though he is higher up the pitch.  
 

Its not like Henry is doing this to benefit the Nats but it is a nice little side bonus.   

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I always thought Piette's passing ability was under rated by many, often the passes he made were under lots of pressure in the defensive zone after breaking up yet another attack back when he was played mostly as a destroyer! I did comment he looked out of sorts earlier in the season playing further up the pitch but he seems to have settled into that role, as @Bison44 opines this could make him a better player, more versatile at least!

Edited by gator
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Piette may be a more versatile player as a result of getting shifted all over the pitch but in my opinion his national team contributions, which were already going to be limited with the midfield we now have, will be further reduced.  Don’t get me wrong I think he will be in the squad but his playing time will be significantly cut and the days of him being automatically pencilled in as the DM are over.  And he is not of the same skill set or ability as Oso, Kaye, Arfield,... so we may have seen the best of Sam.😜

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