It’s the final day of Tishie polls – can’t believe it, can you? This set of polls will be open until Sunday, March 17th! Remember tomorrow is the last day to vote for the first set of polls, so get those last minute choices in.
First up is The Best Duck Face Award/Best FB Upload Award for none other than Karim ‘Canard‘ Benzema – This one is a given, but we’ve got to decide which of his duckfaces deserves the top spot. Here are the nominees!
Since we post pictures of the players’ pets on a regular basis, Watishista Elisha asked if we could have a Fave Pet poll! This is obviously not all their pets but a good sampling (and the reason that we didn’t include Sergio’s Odie is that no one has seen him in years – not sure if he’s still on this mortal coil). Also I couldn’t find a complete photo of all of Marcelo’s pets – the two kittens are missing from this. So many pets!
BONUS TISHIE QUESTION: For next season, if you could replace one person (coach or player) at Real Madrid, who would it be? Who would add to the team in their stead? Why would you make this change? Cost/team affiliation is no object. Answers in the comments please.
- Lozil
headbandsandheartbreak
I would lose Modric. He just doesn’t fit in. And wouldn’t it be nice to get Juan Mata instead? The little Croatian boy who looks like a squirrel for the sexy Care Bear.
my uncontrollable giggling at the duckfaces must have woken up my neighbors. that silly croissant.
the pets were so hard to decide on!
Oh, and ditch dimaria, pick up michu. I want torres to come back to la liga but not to RM.
I’m not sure who exactly I would bring in but I think an attacking, sort of wing player would be good. Seeing as there’s talk of Ronaldo departing in the summer, they’ll need a replacement (who can replace Ronaldo though?!). They have Benz and Higuain as strikers, I know, but I think someone else who will push forward; not in an Ozil/Kaka sort of position but speedy and agile.
Real used to bring in the big household names (i.e. the Galactico days of Zidane, Ronaldo, Figo, Beckham etc) but who would they have now?… Messi? van Persie? Llewandowski? Ibrahimovich?
Guess we’ll have to wait and see who the head coach will be as Mou seems to be off too!
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I’d lose Modric, too, OH or DiMaria! Ugh he tries the nerves. How about getting Philipp Lahm! Yes we may have to move positions around a bit, and his legs have seen many miles, but he still has a few good years left…. and what lovely form! Almost as lovely as Chrissy if I do say!!
Cristiano has a yorkshire terrier???!!! Whats with all of these butch strapping lads with handbag dogs? The first time i saw a photo with sergio and odie i seriously thought it had been photoshopped. i cried actual tears of laughter…
Oh and id bring ibra in…holy eff, can you imagine the carnage he’d bring to an el classico?
Nothing like some Fantasy Manager to start out Sunday morning! We could do without Modric (sorry buddy, thanks for Tuesday, but still) and Di Maria has been too erratic. Then there’s Albiol, Pipita and Benz. I wouldn’t want to get rid of any of them but I would want more options.
Strikers: Use Morata more. He’s shown he can handle starting. More playing time will boost his confidence and improve his game. Get Michu in. I’d love to see what he could do with our midfield backing him up.
Midfield: Bring Pirata back! I second Allison on Mata, and would also bring in David Silva. Apparently I really like Spanish attacking midfielders. Defensive midfielders, maybe Beñat or Camacho. Camacho IMHO is a huge part of why Malaga is doing so well. We should be bringing in younger guys who could hopefully be vital to Madrid in the coming years (plus he’s adorable and would fit right in with the modeling agency vibe we’ve got). And the Ox could also come. The bromance options alone would be worth the transfer fee.
Defence: I’d say Agger but we’re pretty solid on center backs and it would hurt my heart to even pretend take Agger away from Liverpool. van der Wiel as backup for the right back spot, and left back…ermmmm…just keep Marcelo healthy!
Damnit I put The Ox in the wrong place. This is what I get for copy and pasting too early in the morning!
I’m delighted that someone else shares my deep love of the Ox.
The Ox is amazing!! If I could wish to be related to anybody in football, I’d want him to be my little brother.
Ahhhh I’ve been waiting for the Karim poll! I can totally imagine him sitting there voting on this poll too. haha
And player I’d lose, probably Di Maria. And I’m not sure who I’d bring in, maybe someone to strengthen our midfield?
I’d replace di Maria with Iago Aspas from Celta de Vigo. He’s having a fine season despite his team facing relegation (so he might go cheap). To me he looks like Sheldon from Big Bang, okay maybe slightly less geeky.
I have love for Aspas as well (and he always performs for my Fantasy Football team, haha). I’m not fond of di Maria but I’ve come to appreciate what he does for the team (well, on the days he’s on point), especially in terms of speed. I’d give him another half-season to try to get his game back up to par.
I think I’d still have to go with the popular Modric for Out, and Aspas / Hazard / Mata for In. I feel bad for kinda picking on our Lady Edith, but his somewhat intricate style of play doesn’t quite fit in with the way the squad operates, plus his lack of physical presence on the pitch doesn’t do much for the team’s aggressive counter-attacking style.
But if Modric must stay, since he might still be able to adapt given more time, I’d trade Albiol for a superior back-up defender. Simply, the club can afford better. I’d actually consider trading Benz for a more consistent, more forceful attacker (assists are nice but goals are what we require from a striker) but we all know he ain’t going anywhere while Flo’s in charge.
I feel like we need the midfield creativity, but I want us to have a solid defense. I’m not sure I can pick just one player.
I’m not a Modric fan. He hasn’t been convincing to me. But this season neither has Di Maria. I’d replace one of them for (I’m going to get so much flack for this) Eden Hazard. He’s creative, has a massive shot from range, and knows how to draw a foul. He’s scored some absolute beauties for Chelsea. Just need to work on his attitude a little…
Defense… I’d trade Albiol for Daniel Agger or Thiago Silva. I know they’re both a little older, but I feel like they’d offer some great experience and toughness in our defense. I think Mats Hummels would be a good fit too. Very solid.
Striker… I love you Benz, but you’ve GOT to step it up. IF Benz had to go, I’d like to see us use Morata more. I feel like he has a hunger for it. But I could do with Al-Sharaawy or Robert Lewandowski
I would drop Di Maria,Benz,Modric,Essien and Kaka.
I would play with the idea of bringing in Mats Hummels,Marco Rues,Ibra,Mario Gomez,Diego Forlan and dare I say just to please my fantasy Yoann Gourcuff.
They all meet the criteria: Amazig players and even better bodies!
I’d transfer the whole team… to my bedroom…
Okay, real answer, I’d replace DiMaria because he’s so inconsistent. Not sure who I’d want to replace him with, though. Navas, maybe? Navas could be fun.
Lmao! Best answer!
I’d lose Essien or Carvalho, bring in The Ox or Wilshere, I’d swap Benz for Suarez and love to have Reus too
Also agree we should get Michu, I love that guy
I love Michu, too, since last season when he was still with Rayo in La Liga. Would he move over to the other Madrid club? Oh, heck, Michu, just move over to my house!
Michu and Bale. I would hate to lose Higuain. In all actuality, I am meh about Benz
And I want to make a vote for favorite pet – Lola, Marcelo’s Newfoundland, but she’s not listed by herself!
I know, I know, we owe our win to Modric and all, but he’s gotta go. I would love to bring in David Luiz, he seems like the kind of personality that would blend well with our team (not to mention it would avoid him going to Barcelona because I keep reading rumors about that). But I think it’d be cool to see Mario Gomez in the squad just to see what kind of attacking power he could bring.
I would sell Kaka (so he could play in a team which appreciate him more) and buy stephan el shaarawy because he’s young, talented, Italian (and there are no Italian players in RM!!!) and in my opinion he could become new Mesut’s best friend. Moreover el shaarawy plays for Milan and I’m interista…I’d like a weaker Milan (ahhhhhhhhhhhh)!!!
The only one I really want back in our team is our lovely Pirata!!!! Bring him back as soon as possible. It hurts to see him at the far end of the premier league
we can trade him with Essien as he might leave either at the end of the season. He was just one year on loan, right?
WARNING: Looooong post: Stages of tiredness and loud outcries of ‘will she ever finish’ can occur.
So, I don’t know, if you’re still open for suggestions but it was a big question so I needed some time to think.
Anyway, here we go:
Modrid got to go! Yes, huge fan of his game and goal last tuesday but seeing him yesterday made me change my mind (Again). He’s just not good enough and his style of playing doesn’t suit Real Madrid. Plus, he’s too skinny – football is a contact sport – good physique is required and acquired.
Possible replacements:
1: Yoann Gourcuff. Midfielder who used to play brilliantly for Bordeaux (French player of the year in 2008). If the rumours are true and Míster stays, he(Mou) would be able to get something fantastic out of Gourcuff. Look how much Ronaldo, Özil, Sergio etc have improved under Mou’s watchful eyes. Bonus, he will fit right in with the prettiest team in the world.
2: the return of Nuri Sahin (impossible, I know). I still Wonder what could’ve been. I really saw him as the future replacement of Xabi. He’s a great player – he was just so unlucky in Real Madrid.
3: Gündogan also from Dortmund could be a possibility too (though the Whole Nuri-saga probably scarred him off)
Oh, and bring Granero – no reason in particular – just want him back. I miss him.
Next: I’m getting tired of Benzema – ship him back to France! He doesn’t score any goals and has troubles with the law – not good. I know both of our strikers aren’t up to their usual standards but at least Pipita is working his not-so-little applebum off. He was second-best against Man U in my MOTM poll.
Promote Morata. He has done well. Let us give him a chance at the top-level. He impressed me against Barca.
Mario Gomez could be (emphasis on ‘could’) another option if we could teach some better movement inside and outside the box (I haven’t forgotten Germany’s game against Italy – he was a living standard lamp (it’s supposedly called in English).
And then there’s Ronaldo biggest fanboy, Gareth Bale and a lot of rumours. He could be an interesting buy and with presidential election coming up – a realistic possibility.
Since I can’t handle the thought of Ronaldo leaving – I go to a depressive and desperate state of mind where I sing “Quedate Ronaldo” to calm myself – I’m not going to talk about it. He’s staying – period! (Note to myself: remember to buy Ronaldo’s jersey before it’s too late).
Both Ronaldo and Bale play on the left but apparently Ronaldo sometimes played on the right at Man U (despite following Ronaldo at Man U, I must admit I never noticed where he played on the pitch. I was too busy trying to get a sneak peek of Ronaldo’s perfect sculptured body….. ::drool::). So problem solved.
Oh my, this is a crazy long post – I really need to control myself
Oh, it’s an open question – I just wanted to promote some discussion among the very smart and knowledgeable peeps who come here. One note, Morata was promoted to the first team, but I wish he would get more playing time. The kid is terrific.
Damn, I had this great line about Modric but forgot: He’s the Fernando Torres (read: flop) of Real Madrid
Now, you’ve lost me there. I feel very bad for Torres – he’s got the yips something fierce and it’s heartbreaking to watch. I’d like to see him somewhere that he could have a Mou-like coach to rebuild his confidence. He’s just turned into an easy punching bag/punchline for the media and fans. I think it’s 100% psychological with him. I do think he could recover his form but there’s such an enormous amount of pressure on him. You can see the haunted look in his face every time he steps on the pitch. I was really hoping he would score yesterday. Did y’all see Rio Ferdinand kick him for no reason yesterday? It was such bullshit. If you didn’t, check this out: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/soccer-dirty-tackle/dtotd-rio-ferdinand-abuses-hapless-fernando-torres-no-044216591–sow.html
Sorry, my bad – cruel joke and you’re totally right the boy can’t catch a break. I read/heard somewhere that Fernando Torres said right after his move to Chelsea that while he was playing for Liverpool, he had to play despite not being injured-free and therefore not ready to play which meant he never got over any of his injuries. From what I can tell, he’s having trouble with adjusting his style of play to the changes that these injuries have caused.
Regarding Ferdinand: that was totally out of order and he should be punished. But I’m not surprised, seeing how he reacted to ref and the red card. Just like I did, he’s kicking a guy that’s already down. My apologies.
As much as I dislike Rafa Benitez, I thought that if anyone could coax Nando back to form, it would be him. Well, that lasted all of what, 2 or 3 games? I think Rafa’s overwhelmed, mostly because the boss is all over his business.
You’re right, I think someone like Mou would do wonders for Nando. The way I see it, Mou runs his clubs like a fraternity, and I think Nando needs something like that. Apart from the very personal touch guys like Mou apply to their relationships with players, they also try to build a feeling of real solidarity within the club. Considering the way he came to Chelsea, I don’t know if Nando’s every felt that the people around him sincerely want him to succeed. Even if there is a significant Spanish presence at Chelsea right now, it seems that the players are quite fragmented. Everyone’s worried about how their own careers are going and no one’s really pulling together, at least not in the way of the old Mou brotherhood.
I think the only way Nando might actually get his groove back is if/when he gets transferred out of the club, and for a reasonable, no-pressure fee (the financial loss is inevitable but can you imagine Abramovich’s face when he signs the deal?). I just don’t know where he could go though. How many other places would he be willing to transfer that wouldn’t seem like such a demotion?
I’m no so sure if it is 100% psychological for Nando. I do recall an interview where he decided to have surgery on his knee months before the World Cup just so he could play at the World Cup, and he did it even if the doctors were saying it might shorten his career. My interpretation is that he took a shortcut surgery rather than a longer recuperation. So maybe he’s playing it safe so as not to get injured again, which might end his career.
I wonder if a return to Atletico might be in Nando’s near future. People might see it as a step down from Chelsea but it’s his club, and if he underperforms there won’t be as garing a spotlight on him. If he does well he could be phenomenal for them. Plus he and Sergio can get back together – no more long distance relationship!
wow, that video seriously broke my heart. i totally agree that he needs a coach to help him rebuild his confience.
When will the results be posted? I can hardly wait!!!