by Bad Bob » Thu Apr 06, 2006 4:07 pm
Hi Folks,
The recent revival of the Aimar-Garcia comparisons (see the Aimar thread) have got me wondering about how particular Liverpool players compare to other players in the League, in Europe or beyond (especially since I don't get a chance to see many non-'EPL' games here in Canada).
I'm mostly thinking here of the role a particular player has in our side at the moment and who plays a similar role in another side. Who destroys like Momo? Creates like Xabi? Holds the ball up like Crouchy? Drives the team forward like Stevie? Marshalls the back-line like Carra? etc.
This goes beyond what an individual player has in his locker--it's a question of how an individual's talent dovetails with the larger tactical system his team uses.
Put another way, I'm interested to really question those facile comparisons that get bandied about so often. To take one example, is Sissoko truly the next Paddy Vieira? That is, is there more than just a physical resemblance and some similar footballing attributes? Does (or will) Sissoko fill the same role for us that Vieira used to fill for Arsenal or now fills for Juve? He's one example but there are others that keep cropping up (Xabi and Cesc, Crouch and Carew, Didi and Makele, etc.).
Your thoughts?
