The Importance of Alphonso Davies

[Obinna]

Apparently he broke the Bundesliga speed record today

https://www.mlssoccer.com/post/2020/06/16/alphonso-davies-breaks-bundesliga-speed-record-then-sees-red-bayern-munich-clinch

[Aird25]

Does anyone have a clip of the red he took with Canada? I can't remember if it was out of frustration like his first card today

[N1ckbr0wn]

11 minutes ago, Aird25 said:

Does anyone have a clip of the red he took with Canada? I can't remember if it was out of frustration like his first card today

Pretty similar, thankfully he doesn’t make too much of a habit of it. A young mans passion will turn into a veterans discipline real soon

[Gian-Luca]

https://www.tsn.ca/video/could-davies-do-for-soccer-in-canada-what-nash-carter-did-for-basketball~1978655

The level of knowledge/ignorance here between media pundits who are not "soccer guys" is interesting but perhaps part of what Alphonso Davies could possibly change for Canada.

[Obinna]

Post game comments on the sending off:

"Unfortunately, anger comes into play," he explained. "I got a yellow card, apologies for that. The second yellow card, I don't know what happened, I tried to run backwards, he came into me.

"It's the referee's decision, so I apologise to everyone. That's not the FC Bayern way, but I'm happy we can win the championship."

[SthMelbRed]

2 hours ago, Gian-Luca said:

https://www.tsn.ca/video/could-davies-do-for-soccer-in-canada-what-nash-carter-did-for-basketball~1978655

The level of knowledge/ignorance here between media pundits who are not "soccer guys" is interesting but perhaps part of what Alphonso Davies could possibly change for Canada.

These two should never be talking about football beyond reading the scores, when required. Ridiculously bad segment.

[TGAA_Star]

Alphonso Davies is officially a Bundesliga champion now...so damn proud of him winning the Bundesliga title with Bayern Munich...that is 8 consecutive titles for Bayern Munich now as a club in the Bundesliga. Now if Alphonso can win the UEFA Champions League title with Bayern Munich, he would be a shoe in for that Golden Boy award.

[Guest]

1 minute ago, TGAA_Star said:

Alphonso Davies is officially a Bundesliga champion now...so damn proud of him winning the Bundesliga title with Bayern Munich...that is 8 consecutive titles for Bayern Munich now as a club in the Bundesliga. Now if Alphonso can win the UEFA Champions League title with Bayern Munich, he would be a shoe in for that Golden Boy award.

He won it last year too

[Guest]

The commentators said that the second yellow was a foul but not a book worthy situation. I agree with them.

[TGAA_Star]

Yeah Davies is lights out for Bayern Munich right now...but can he be lights out again but this time for the national team heading into Gold Cup 2021/World Cup qualifying for Qatar 2022? For Canada to win the 2021 Gold Cup, Davies essentially is going to have to carry the team on his back. Like think Messi for Argentina as an example. Messi is unbelievable for Barcelona but for Argentina for some reason he can't be lights out for them. I just want to see Davies play the same way that he does for Bayern but with Canada. If he can carry this team on his back, then Canada in the CONCACAF region can go from being a good team to being a great team.

[El Hombre]

7 hours ago, SthMelbRed said:

These two should never be talking about football beyond reading the scores, when required. Ridiculously bad segment.

But its very indicative of the average sports fan in Canada.  Personally, I think its a small victory that it got as much airtime as it did.  The more he is talked about in non-soccer circles (as ignorant as those conversations are), the better it is for Canadian soccer as a whole.

It would just be nice if there was someone there that could bring up names like Hutchinson or De Guzman (the Canadian one, not the Dutch one) or Radzinski when they start talking about the best player ever.  Or mention David and Millar as other up and comers.

[Ivan]

8 minutes ago, El Hombre said:

But its very indicative of the average sports fan in Canada.  Personally, I think its a small victory that it got as much airtime as it did.  The more he is talked about in non-soccer circles (as ignorant as those conversations are), the better it is for Canadian soccer as a whole.

It would just be nice if there was someone there that could bring up names like Hutchinson or De Guzman (the Canadian one, not the Dutch one) or Radzinski when they start talking about the best player ever.  Or mention David and Millar as other up and comers.

Exactly.  Chuckled repeatedly through the segment, but at least they were talking soccer and their general topic was bang on (Davies' influence).  At the end (the clip didn't extend that far) Hayes acknowledged their lack of soccer knowledge and said they would try and get KJ or Caldwell, or perhaps someone from Munich, on tomorrow's show (today) to knowledgeably discuss Davies (and hopefully David's and Millar's et al) potential influence on the game in Canada.

[rkomar]

9 hours ago, SthMelbRed said:

These two should never be talking about football beyond reading the scores, when required. Ridiculously bad segment.

The whole point of the show is that they are "idiots talking about stuff they aren't experts on".  They even did a segment once where they tried to read xrays to diagnose injuries.  The show is meant for entertainment, not news, so getting it wrong from time to time is part of the fun.  Regular joes can listen in and feel part of the conversation rather than just being talked at.

[N1ckbr0wn]

Champions League returning in August!! 
 

 

[Kadenge]

 from a Sportsnet article by Galindo. Interesting especially for those in favour of Davies at LB for Canada

That’s also a testament to Flick’s tactical revolution at the club. He’s highlighted every player’s best attributes and masked their weaknesses, Davies included.

 

Davies’ influence and areas of improvement have been repeatedly highlighted, but even those defensive deficiencies are slowly eroding.

“[Speed’s] a factor in my game that I use very well but I think over the years going forward with this team I will definitely learn more about better positioning so it doesn’t look like I’m out of position just running back as fast as I can to catch up,” Davies said after Bayern’s win over Dortmund on May 26.

Flick’s high-pressing system certainly benefits Davies. He can push forward regularly thanks to Pavard’s more reserved positioning at right-back, plus one of Joshua Kimmich or Thiago sits back to ensure there are always three or four players to defend counter-attacks.

Because the high press limits the back line’s work, it behooves Davies to roam forward. No other team has attempted more pressures in the attacking third than Bayern, per FBRef.com, so the Bavarians are regularly attempting to recover possession close to goal, thus easing the burden on the defenders.

[El Hombre]

25 minutes ago, Kadenge said:

Flick’s high-pressing system certainly benefits Davies. He can push forward regularly thanks to Pavard’s more reserved positioning at right-back, plus one of Joshua Kimmich or Thiago sits back to ensure there are always three or four players to defend counter-attacks.

I think this is the key point.  For everyone looking for Davies at LB, which of the midfielders are you going to neuter in order to cover for him?  Even with Bayern's firepower, they still need to have someone cover for him on a regular basis and they choose Kimmich and Thiago.

We don't have a Kimmich or Thiago that can transition from offense to defense and back again like they do.  Therefore, even if we do hold someone back it may not be enough.

Davies is garnering raves for two things these days:

1 - Crazy runs forward with a cross

2 - Last ditch recoveries on defense.

Which do you want to see more of in a Canada shirt?  He won't be able to do 1 from the LB position with Canada against good opposition, because he doesn't have the surrounding talent that he does with Bayern.  And, when he does, it will leave Canada much more exposed than it does with Bayern.

This shouldn't be as much of an argument as it is.

[Stryker911]

19 minutes ago, El Hombre said:

I think this is the key point.  For everyone looking for Davies at LB, which of the midfielders are you going to neuter in order to cover for him?  Even with Bayern's firepower, they still need to have someone cover for him on a regular basis and they choose Kimmich and Thiago.

We don't have a Kimmich or Thiago that can transition from offense to defense and back again like they do.  Therefore, even if we do hold someone back it may not be enough.

Davies is garnering raves for two things these days:

1 - Crazy runs forward with a cross

2 - Last ditch recoveries on defense.

Which do you want to see more of in a Canada shirt?  He won't be able to do 1 from the LB position with Canada against good opposition, because he doesn't have the surrounding talent that he does with Bayern.  And, when he does, it will leave Canada much more exposed than it does with Bayern.

This shouldn't be as much of an argument as it is.

I used to think this as well, but I think Kaye or Arfield can cover when he makes a run. I also agree he doesn't have the same quality cover as he does with Bayern, but he also isnt facing Bundesliga level quality competition. The overall quality of the region can be nullified by our other players, with possibly the exception of Mexico.

[Kent]

I watched the TSN clip after reading the comments here. They were much more knowledgeable than this forum had me believe. It’s clearly not their main sport but they held their own I thought, and they did say at the beginning it should be KJ or Caldwell talking about this, so they acknowledged their lack of experience.

[El Hombre]

1 hour ago, Stryker911 said:

I used to think this as well, but I think Kaye or Arfield can cover when he makes a run. I also agree he doesn't have the same quality cover as he does with Bayern, but he also isnt facing Bundesliga level quality competition. The overall quality of the region can be nullified by our other players, with possibly the exception of Mexico.

I don't think its just about "covering when he makes a run".  Its making Kaye/Arfield sit in front of the back four constantly.  Expect them to have little to no effect going forward.

Davies plays very far up the pitch for a LB and he has been successful at that.  Why not just make his primary responsibility offensive and play him up the left?  Let the back line defend and let him do what he does best, carve up other team's defenses.

[dyslexic nam]

1 hour ago, Stryker911 said:

I used to think this as well, but I think Kaye or Arfield can cover when he makes a run. I also agree he doesn't have the same quality cover as he does with Bayern, but he also isnt facing Bundesliga level quality competition. The overall quality of the region can be nullified by our other players, with possibly the exception of Mexico.

While I admit I haven’t seen much of Eustaquio’s play, he may also be someone who can move fluidly between attack and defence. Asked largely on what I have read, he is a very capable defensive mid who can push up into attack and distribute the ball well.  That seems like the kind of guy who could maybe fill that coverage role noted above.  It would mean yet another shuffle/accommodation (what happens to Piette in that scenario) but that is what happens when your pool deepens beyond 11 decent players.  

[dyslexic nam]

(Not advocating for him at LB, just brainstorming formation logic).  

[Obinna]

1 hour ago, Stryker911 said:

I used to think this as well, but I think Kaye or Arfield can cover when he makes a run. I also agree he doesn't have the same quality cover as he does with Bayern, but he also isnt facing Bundesliga level quality competition. The overall quality of the region can be nullified by our other players, with possibly the exception of Mexico.

I think you could make the argument that Mexico and the USA would amount to "Bundesliga" level competition just in terms of talent. 

[Obinna]

15 hours ago, SthMelbRed said:

These two should never be talking about football beyond reading the scores, when required. Ridiculously bad segment.

I watched and at times it was painful. Some things were a result of not being "soccer" guys, but some things are inexcusable, such as claiming Davies never played LB in MLS, which is clearly false. This doesn't require you to be a soccer guy, it just takes a little bit of extra effort to get your facts straight. 

Anyways, painful as it may be I do think we should support these guys and appreciate their attempts. Do we want to chase away anyone and everyone who are not "pure" soccer folk?

Patience is a virtue. 

[Bdog]

1 hour ago, dyslexic nam said:

While I admit I haven’t seen much of Eustaquio’s play, he may also be someone who can move fluidly between attack and defence. Asked largely on what I have read, he is a very capable defensive mid who can push up into attack and distribute the ball well.  That seems like the kind of guy who could maybe fill that coverage role noted above.  It would mean yet another shuffle/accommodation (what happens to Piette in that scenario) but that is what happens when your pool deepens beyond 11 decent players.  

I think someone here described him as similar to Michael Bradley, not as good defensively but a better passer. If he has any peripheral vision (something Bradley doesn’t seem to possess) I’ll take it. 

[Bison44]

Its not just that you are "neutering" a midfielder, its that the CB playing beside him is not capable of helping out like his CB's at Bayern.  Cornelius, Vittoria, James, Henry etc, they all have their hands full when playing against top level CONCACAF teams, putting an extra burden on them seems risky.  Sacrifice the LW you wished was there, let Davies run wild and goals will come with some combo of Hoilet David, Cav, Larin, Arfield, Kaye, Osorio et al.  Defense seems to be the spot that need shoring up.