Stric
New member
That can happen when a player does well, but an incompetent coach ignores him and destroys his self-confidence as a reward. He never got back to that level.
No.
No.
Martin Montoya
- Thread starter Barcaman
- Start date
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Flavia
Guest
which coach would that be? I think Montoya was never that good, just that. For some odd reason, you're one of the few who rate him.
Chainsaw
Killahead
That came out after the recent friendly match vs Lecco where he was really bad. Mancini said in the preseason that Montoya needs to improve himself because he comes from a different style of play, which in some ways means "dude you're a mess!"
Stric
New member
Tito. Montoya was very good in 2012-13. If I remember correctly, Alves got injured twice during that season (once in August already, and once later after playing a gazillion games in a row), and Montoya's performances in Dani's absence were his best to date. On the other hand, Alves, when he wasn't injured, was probably having the worst season of his career. At that time, there wasn't just a few of us who thought Montoya was good. Back then there were plenty of people that wanted Alves benched and Montoya playing instead of him. Montoya was at his best, and Alves at his worst. But for some reason, Tito would never miss a single chance to play Alves, despite his horrible performances throughout the season. Even after Montoya showed he was up to the task. And after that, Montoya declined visibly.
Barcilliant
Senior Member
Yes, I agree. I think he could have been a much better player but he wasn't managed well.
However at the first team level noone has time to babysit you. Either you perform or stay on the bench.
It doesn't help that Mancini is a pretty average coach.
However at the first team level noone has time to babysit you. Either you perform or stay on the bench.
It doesn't help that Mancini is a pretty average coach.
Get him back now then whilst we need a right back.
Chainsaw
Killahead
lol the irony!
Zinedinho
New member
Yes.
Stric
New member
It's not babysitting, it's management. If there was one thing that was painfully lacking during Tito's time here, it was choosing players based on performance. Not only starting line-ups, but substitutions, as well. Tito constantly started players who were playing badly throughout the season, and he never once subbed out a player that was having a shockingly bad game. That has nothing to do with giving special attention to Montoya, it's just managing the team.
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Flavia
Guest
Alves, at his worst, was still better than Montoya. I don't think tito was to blame, he's just not good enough.
Stric
New member
Alves at his worst was sending 200 crosses to the stands per game, and made us concede almost every time from his side. And made the occasional back pass. If you think Montoya was worse than that, suit yourself, but I'd rather have nobody there than that.
It was exactly Tito's doing, because the Alves situation wasn't the only example of this. Xavi was on painkillers and wasn't performing at his best (although Xavi being Xavi, was still pretty good, admittedly), but Tito overplayed him to extreme levels, even though he had a recovered and healthy Thiago on the bench. Now I know some people think Thiago isn't all that, but he was sure as hell good enough to play against some/many of the teams we were facing at that point, and especially after we secured the title. If for no other reason, than to rest Xavi. But Tito thought otherwise.
Those issues during that season were never about Montoya or Thiago and how good they were, they were about Tito and his approach.
God Serena
New member
Solid points being made here. This also included our front line, as well. Alexis got to start damn near every game and it took him until January to score his first La Liga goal. In the early round of the Copa he missed no less than four easy goalscoring chances and at many points throughout the season seemed like he could barely even run in a straight line. Compared to Tello, who was putting in some solid performances whenever he played, Alexis was a total loser. The runs Tello was able to make on that lefthand side allowed Messi to make those same passes he now makes to Neymar, in fact. Why Tito refused to see this was troubling and I won't pretend it wasn't infuriating.
Tito's season overall was a mess, though. Messi nearly singlehandedly walked the league and Madrid could barely string two wins together, so the 100 point league win serves as more of a mask to the greater issues we faced that season.
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Flavia
Guest
Those endless crosses were under Tata, and it seemed as coach oriented, as he didn't do that last season. Alves is a much better player than Montoya, always was, that's not debatable. And Thiago is much more talented than Montoya ever was. Montoya is like Bartra, a canterano some have/had as favorite and wanted badly for him to make it, but the reality is he's just not good enough. Not for Tito, not for Tata, not for Enrique, and now, not for Mancini. That's a clear pattern.
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