Power n Glory wrote:No because Petit and Gilberto are two examples of players that evolved. Gilberto started his career as a CB and moved into a DM role. Petit was CM, moved into a DM role and ended up playing as CB after Arsenal.
So you're telling me a DM that just shields the midfield can work for us? So what happens when that DM isn't a great passer and panics with the ball at his feet? This is exactly the sort of player you'd scapegoat as to why we can't get the ball to Ozil. Playere like Elneny or Coquelin.
When I say a player needs to be able to play multiple roles I mean they have to be a good all round. Able to pass, defend, progress the ball.....
Technique has got worse over the years.
Now it's become all too generic. Your goalkeeper and center back have the technique of an average midfielder, problem is we do not see any magic specialists in technique and flair like Riquelme, Ronaldinho etc.. emerge at all.
Attacking Midfielders are all becoming like Aaron Ramsey, very good to solid technique, excellent engine, utilized well in the hole. Kai Havertz is more a goalscoring Ballack than Littebarski. Hes a big talent but I'm honest in that Ozil excited me a lot more at 20 than Havertz has.
As for attackers and strikers, all the best technique you see in the next gen are from these free role players who are all lesser version clones of Messi and CR7.
This has been the effect of making tackling so hard due to much stricter rules. The game flows much more now compared to before 2007. You can't do what Gary Neville did to Jose Reyes in THAT game that game 49 and out, because of this and over time a preference to high pressing with athlete has become the norm, added the lack of any creativity with the younger generation due to the over reliance of social media and instant gratification over patience and allowing our spiritual intuition to manifest.
I look at van Dijk who is seen as the worlds best defender as a sorry state for the game. He is a top player, strong, a leader, quick, agile for his size, excellent at player to player battles and possesses excellent technique. But his reading of the game has always been poor and still is now, that 7-2 nonsense would never happen with a guy like Adams vs a bang average side like Villa. This has all been put in to help agents wrap their prized assets in cotton wool as much as possible and to further sanitize the game of its tribal roots.
This change towards physicality hasn't benefited football at all. Its got worse as a spectacle and in overall quality. Wenger has basically said this with his recent comments on Ozil. While we all know this is no excuse to Ozil's shit the last 2-3 years for us and why he couldn't adapt his game, I do miss players like him at his best because right now I haven't seen any attacking mid youngster who excites me like Ozil did in his post Diego years at Werder Bremen.