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Posted:
Mon Dec 03, 2007 4:53 pmby JoeTerp
I would say yes too, which would mean there is no need to keep momo when we need cash to sign up Mascherano AND there are apparently foreign clubs that want to sign him up. Selling Carson and Momo to sign Mascherano is like loosing nothing in order not loose something that we already have. No brainer 
Posted:
Mon Dec 03, 2007 8:44 pmby bigmick
I only saw the highlights of the game, but Lucas continues to impress. I'm not sure about the comparison of his passing range to Alonso and Masherano (or indeed about the comparison between those two but no matter) he clearly is a very talented footballer.
Each time I see him, he looks more and more "Arsenalish" in the way he plays the game, and Saints little jibe at the press which was totally justified brought it back to me. He reminds me much more of Fabregas than of any of our midfileders, and such is his talent just about the only concern I have is when he is going to play. Once Alonso gets fit, it's hard to see Rafa selecting him too often in front of any two of Alonso, Gerrard and Masherano. That in itself isn't a massive problem, and if the kid is happy to play bit-part for eigteen months or so then we may have a player. I like him a lot.
As for Sissoko, then i would have thought that he is going to have to be sacrificed should we sign Masherano. Once again, for what it's worth I would probably take the view that the seventeen million squid or whatever his salary and transfers would come to could probably be better spent elsewhere given the quality we've got, but Rafa doesn't agree so Momo will probably be cashed in. If it is to an English club, my suspicion is that he will become a far, far better player than most of us imagine.
Posted:
Mon Dec 03, 2007 8:55 pmby Igor Zidane
bigmick wrote:I only saw the highlights of the game, but Lucas continues to impress. I'm not sure about the comparison of his passing range to Alonso and Masherano (or indeed about the comparison between those two but no matter) he clearly is a very talented footballer.
Each time I see him, he looks more and more "Arsenalish" in the way he plays the game, and Saints little jibe at the press which was totally justified brought it back to me. He reminds me much more of Fabregas than of any of our midfileders, and such is his talent just about the only concern I have is when he is going to play. Once Alonso gets fit, it's hard to see Rafa selecting him too often in front of any two of Alonso, Gerrard and Masherano. That in itself isn't a massive problem, and if the kid is happy to play bit-part for eigteen months or so then we may have a player. I like him a lot.
As for Sissoko, then i would have thought that he is going to have to be sacrificed should we sign Masherano. Once again, for what it's worth I would probably take the view that the seventeen million squid or whatever his salary and transfers would come to could probably be better spent elsewhere given the quality we've got, but Rafa doesn't agree so Momo will probably be cashed in. If it is to an English club, my suspicion is that he will become a far, far better player than most of us imagine.
Good shout mick , i think your comparison with Fabregas is a good one. To me the lad hasn't done anything that makes you think he's a world beater yet, it's just that he's only 20 and he looks assured and calm on the ball . He doesn't look out of place next to Gerrard and he has just fitted in with no fuss whatsoever. He looks like he's been playing for us for a couple of season's not months.
Posted:
Mon Dec 03, 2007 9:01 pmby bigmick
Yeah I said on another thread Igor he's all 360 looks when he hasn't got it, good body shapes so he can ping it first time and little drifts into pockets of space. It's early doors with him obviously, and I've probably only seen him play in total for about an hour and a hlaf but I think he's more of an offensive midfielder than a defensive one. He looks intelligent enough to play either role, but if he can arrive in the penalty area like he drifts into space in the congested centre circle, he should have a goal in him.
Posted:
Mon Dec 03, 2007 9:56 pmby JoeTerp
I want to see Lucas partner with Plessis or Spearing in the FA cup game. that will give us a chance to see him in an environment where he would need to be creating a lot more offense, and would need to play in more of a Cesc role.
Posted:
Tue Dec 04, 2007 12:22 amby weringo
bigmick wrote:Yeah I said on another thread Igor he's all 360 looks when he hasn't got it, good body shapes so he can ping it first time and little drifts into pockets of space. It's early doors with him obviously, and I've probably only seen him play in total for about an hour and a hlaf but I think he's more of an offensive midfielder than a defensive one. He looks intelligent enough to play either role, but if he can arrive in the penalty area like he drifts into space in the congested centre circle, he should have a goal in him.
He looks more like a deep-lying playmaker to me, the closest player to him in the world imo is Pirlo, and I agree with what you said about him being an Arsenal-type player. Every time he gets on the ball he looks so comfortable and composed, you just know he isn't going to give the ball away cheaply.
I can see Rafa's logic in taking Gerrard off for him in the Everton game, although I don't agree with the decision.
Posted:
Tue Dec 04, 2007 10:52 amby 66-1112520797
From what I've seen of him he looks quite a useful player, but nothing out of the ordinary.
Against Bolton he had a good first half, but some of his passing and heading to teamates were pretty wayward at times during the second half.
Like Babel needs more time to settle
Posted:
Tue Dec 04, 2007 11:24 amby mungi
weringo wrote:bigmick wrote:Yeah I said on another thread Igor he's all 360 looks when he hasn't got it, good body shapes so he can ping it first time and little drifts into pockets of space. It's early doors with him obviously, and I've probably only seen him play in total for about an hour and a hlaf but I think he's more of an offensive midfielder than a defensive one. He looks intelligent enough to play either role, but if he can arrive in the penalty area like he drifts into space in the congested centre circle, he should have a goal in him.
He looks more like a deep-lying playmaker to me, the closest player to him in the world imo is Pirlo, and I agree with what you said about him being an Arsenal-type player. Every time he gets on the ball he looks so comfortable and composed, you just know he isn't going to give the ball away cheaply.
I can see Rafa's logic in taking Gerrard off for him in the Everton game, although I don't agree with the decision.
with all due respect lucas should not be compared to pirlo. lucas doesnt have the range of passing pirlo has and his role is different to pirlo. pirlo is purely a playmaker while lucas is a Dm/box to box player. to compare these two is insane
Posted:
Tue Dec 04, 2007 12:48 pmby Scottbot
mungi wrote:with all due respect lucas should not be compared to pirlo. lucas doesnt have the range of passing pirlo has and his role is different to pirlo. pirlo is purely a playmaker while lucas is a Dm/box to box player. to compare these two is insane
It's way to early to pigeon hole this lad into one position or another. We don't really have a clue as to whether he will be a box to box player, a simple holding midfielder or a 'deep laying playmaker' as yet. As for his range of passing, i don't think he's rearly had the chance to demonstrate his full range yet.
Posted:
Tue Dec 04, 2007 2:28 pmby pokster
NEWS STORY
LUCAS HAILS SUPER SKIPPER STEVIE
Paul Eaton 04 December 2007
Brazilian youngster Lucas today thanked Steven Gerrard for helping him make an impressive introdution to English football.
The 20-year-old playmaker has established himself as a regular in Rafael Benitez's first team plans over recent weeks and admits playing alongside the skipper is providing him with the best education he could have wished for.
He said: "Stevie and I are different players. I am younger and I am still learning and he is helping me a lot.
"When I play in midfield with him I have to play more of a holding role because he can go forward, create chances and score goals himself.
"Hopefully, when I have played more games and got more confidence I can go forward more myself.
"I am happy to be playing because I can learn from players like Steven. It is fantastic to play alongside him because he is one of the best players in the world.
"Hopefully, one day I will be as good as he is but that is a long way away."
Lucas is delighted to have played his part in the Reds' recent winning run and insists confidence in the camp is high that our current form can be maintained.
He added: "We are scoring a lot of goals in games at the moment and we have to keep that going.
"It is hard to say why it is happening at this time but the team is playing really well and we are creating plenty of chances.
"In the first half against Fulham we scored two goals and that made it easier, especially when a team is trying to make it difficult for you.
"We have played really well in the last five or six games and the confidence is much better because we are scoring goals and winning but now we have to look forward to the next game."
Posted:
Tue Dec 04, 2007 2:35 pmby f9Torres
In my opinion, Lucas y a great midfielder, and in few years, he will be one of the 4 or 5 best midfielders in the world.
Posted:
Tue Dec 04, 2007 3:39 pmby JC_81
Getting a bit carried away here lads - Fabregas? Pirlo? Lucas hasn't done nearly enough to be mentioned in the same breath as these guys.
He does look a good prospect though. Always shows for the ball and is comfortable on it. Likes a tackle too. So far I'd agree that he plays like a deep-lying playmaker - a similar role that Alonso does so well for us. But he also hints that because he's been playing alongside Gerard who bombs forward a lot, he has been told to sit deeper. I think in time he'll fancy himself as a box-to-box midfielder, but I can only ever see him getting a chance to do that when Gerrard is not playing. Even at that, as Mick says, when Alonso gets fit, Lucas will probably only get the odd apperance this season.
I think the reason he was bought was because apart from Gerrard, none of our centre-mids get into the opposition box too often and we are lacking in that area when Gerrard doesn't play. I think Lucas was bought as another attacking option from centre-mid and in time we'll see him as more of a box-to-box player.
Unfortunately a lot depends on how he continues to develop. Not long ago Sissoko came into the side and most were singing his praises. A few years on and he hasn't improved at all I don't think. Most would agree it's probably time to move him on as it loks like he's 5th choice centre-mid these days.
Posted:
Tue Dec 04, 2007 6:03 pmby Leonmc0708
Owzat wrote:Big Niall wrote:Funny how people are saying Momo should be sold, I remember people saying he was going to be better than Viera - one man of the match performance and you'll be saying he should be captain.
The funniest thing is people couldn't see how one dimensional he was, he may be 'young' but I doubt we'll see the kind of improvements in passing, ball skills and shooting that would make him in the same street as Vieira.
I could make a case for Sissoko being the worst signing ever, I think Sissoko is doing it for me right now!
Lionel Messi is still finding bits of fluff from Momos 
pocket in his hair from our game at the Camp Nou last season lad, so dont join the peewee brigade and go over the top on this one eh ?
Posted:
Tue Dec 04, 2007 6:03 pmby Scottbot
john craig wrote:Getting a bit carried away here lads - Fabregas? Pirlo? Lucas hasn't done nearly enough to be mentioned in the same breath as these guys.
He does look a good prospect though. Always shows for the ball and is comfortable on it. Likes a tackle too. So far I'd agree that he plays like a deep-lying playmaker - a similar role that Alonso does so well for us. But he also hints that because he's been playing alongside Gerard who bombs forward a lot, he has been told to sit deeper. I think in time he'll fancy himself as a box-to-box midfielder, but I can only ever see him getting a chance to do that when Gerrard is not playing. Even at that, as Mick says, when Alonso gets fit, Lucas will probably only get the odd apperance this season.
I think the reason he was bought was because apart from Gerrard, none of our centre-mids get into the opposition box too often and we are lacking in that area when Gerrard doesn't play. I think Lucas was bought as another attacking option from centre-mid and in time we'll see him as more of a box-to-box player.
Unfortunately a lot depends on how he continues to develop. Not long ago Sissoko came into the side and most were singing his praises. A few years on and he hasn't improved at all I don't think. Most would agree it's probably time to move him on as it loks like he's 5th choice centre-mid these days.
Spot on there John. I know we love to get carried on here but it's very early days.
Posted:
Wed Dec 05, 2007 2:52 amby poolboyuk
He's one of those players who you can just tell oozes class even though he hasnt had a massive impact so far. Comparisons to Fabgregas and Pirlo are valid in style only - he's clearly not achieved bugger all compared to them. That said he's showing all the right signs of developing into a top top player. I reckon we might even see a bit more of Gerrard on the right with Lucas and Mascherano as the centre two. You have to had it to Rafa - from only having Hamann to partner Stevie G we've now got four real top class players in Alonso, Sissoko Lucas, and Mascherano!!
If out of all this we sacrifice Momo it will be a bit sad but understandable. He will develop into a really great midfielder given time but it looks increasingly likely not at Anfield. Then again the Mascherano deal might collapse and he'll be going nowhere! Amazes me how quickly people forget his performances in 2005/06 and against Barcelona last year.