[WC 2018] Liechtenstein - Albania - 06/10/2016 - 20:45 CET

[Princ]

xhaka offers nothin that abrashi can't do and do better .. Sayin his "grit" motivates teammates is just naive .. Basha is confident on the ball and as you said he is a better passer and playmaker

[Princ]

In some of our best games basha has started in mf .. France 1-0 .. Romania 1-0 .. Lithuania 4-0 .. Norway 1-0 are some that come to mind .. Now maybe his form has dropped since then but I think we should try him out after all it's lihtenstain not spain..

[Princ]

4-1*

[Albo_eagle]

Kaçe, Abrashi, Xhaka and Memushaj are the four players who should be making up the midfield three. The others are of no use.

[Princ]

^ And what has xhaka done to be in that list ? don't tell me about his "energy" pls .. Him and abrashi do the same job but abrashi does it better . Only time you could put both in the midfield is when your playin for a draw or humbje dinjitoze

[artan]

^ And what has xhaka done to be in that list ? don't tell me about his "energy" pls .. Him and abrashi do the same job but abrashi does it better . Only time you could put both in the midfield is when your playin for a draw or humbje dinjitoze

I would say Xhaka was our best player during our Euro 2016 qualification campaign. He was the heart of the midfield and a key clog in Di Biasi's system in terms of pressing, marking and winning the ball back. As for in comparison with Abrashi, Xhaka offers more technically and he's not as scared in going forward. There were several matches where Xhaka was acting as a box - box midfielder. While I agree the quality in the final third wasn't all there he at least tried and pressed the issue something our other midfielders failed to do. Our other midfielders totally shit themselves when they have the ball by either panicking or losing it, you'll see Xhaka try to play 1 - 2s or cross it in, etc. He also ended up with 1 - 2 key assists.

The problem lies when Di Biasi tries to play Xhaka as defensive winger. Completely neutralizes his skillset.

I actually think the Xhaka - Abrashi partnership is not bad if only we had a true holding mid that is in the mold of a Xabi Alonso(obviously not as good)

[Aurora Bulkualis]

De Biasi is the luckiest motherfucker alive. First a one in a lifetime volley by Balaj vs. Portugal, then 3 points from drone. Now when we're playing like shit vs. Pandevs (and would've lost imo), match gets interrupted, and gets replayed the next day when he can calm everyone down. And Balaj again with a match saver. Watch Sadiku score a tap-in on the 95th minute vs. Lichtenstein with only 3 minutes of added time, and DB will be branded a genius.

As for Xhaka, dude is massively overrated the more I watch him play. He's like a less retarded version of Lila. Guy can't put two passes together. Same goes for Abrashi. I'd still play him over scrubs like Kukeli though. Memushaj right now is our best CM. He might turn crap too though so Idk how he'll do in the future.

[Leandro]

I also think Xhaka is not being played correctly. With basel he plays better and often assists or even scores. My only problem with him is that he seems to be a hothead. Stop the hate on Lila.

[Plako]

De Biasi is the luckiest motherfucker alive. First a one in a lifetime volley by Balaj vs. Portugal, then 3 points from drone. Now when we're playing like shit vs. Pandevs (and would've lost imo), match gets interrupted, and gets replayed the next day when he can calm everyone down. And Balaj again with a match saver. Watch Sadiku score a tap-in on the 95th minute vs. Lichtenstein with only 3 minutes of added time, and DB will be branded a genius.

Yeah well at some point you'd have to understand that it's not simply down to luck but give credit to Gani for putting together a compact unit that is bringing results. You can also say we were unlucky concede at home to Denmark, Portugal and Serbia in the dying minutes so we should have really come first in our group had it not been for those mishaps.



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[Dallku]

I like all Xhaka-Kukeli-Abrashi as individuals but they do not compliment each other and the fact that we have no decent wingers/attackers makes them look worse than they are(it has to be said). We're talking about them not "complimenting" when they have the ball but defensively they are pretty good. They'll break up play and then make the safe pass... problem is that we need more than that.

Kukeli is getting some harsh criticism. He has a great first touch(rare for Albanian players) and you can give him the ball in tight situations and he'll stay composed and make the safe pass. That's very important for his position in front of the backline. The mistake he made vs Mac was him getting a bit too comfortable for his own good because the game at that point did seem too easy for him. Maybe it's not noticed to others but imo he gives the midfield a lot of stability and composure.