THE WOLF'S DEN - Tana dei Lupi I

[RomaShield27]

Is Perrotta suspended for our next two games? He is for Cagliari, anyway – along with DDR and The LitM – and I think he is out for ManUre too, right? I was going to say that perhaps its not a bad thing that DDR and The LitM are suspended for the weekend and so will be nice and fresh for the CL, but every game is crucial from here on in. A win against Cagliari is obviously a must, but I just hope Tuesday won't be a big distraction and the players will focus on Sardinia first.

Seen ManUre thrash the 'Scum yesterday. I'm tempted to say the 'Scum were just muck as always (hence Inter are muck, hence the scudetto is ours), but they were just a little bit more muck than the muck the ManUre produced, which was enough to beat the muck, in no small part thanks to Mascherano, the big mucker. Fuck the muck. Seriously (sorry I got a bit carried away there with the muck stuff there eh), it was your typical EPL low-quality high-tempo/octane type game, which was really decided by Mascherano's ridiculous antics. Still, I have to say ManUre didn't really play that great at all, not that that will matter to their fans, which could be worrying for us, if they really step into they're stride and find top gear in time for next week. They're at home to Villa this weekend which is a relatively handy game considering Villa's dire form, but all in all they look like they will be in pretty good shape for this day week.

[romawi]

I thought a red card is a one game suspension. Gonna be interesting to see this weekends starting line-up, with all these guys out.

[maro]

Yes; Shield, though, means that he's also then suspended for the ManUre game after he picked up another yellow in the second leg against Real.

[g.smiley]

Shit, WancU is next week already. I'm bubbling over for a chance at revenge. Nothing would give me greater pleasure than knocking Sir Whiskeydick and his bumboy Cristiana Rohnda out of the CL.

[oily]

[giallo-rossi.ie]

[SPqR]

[SPqR]

[stefano]

[oily]

[RomaShield27]

[oily]

shieldy.. open a thread for the manure-roma games

[maro]

Have you guys seen the headbutt with which Maresca caught Aguero over the weekend? It's a beauty.

What do you think - Spags will play DDR, Pizza, and Aquilani together in the absence of Simone? Trying to keep it tight in the middle of the park? I'd like to see Cicinho and Max in the fullback positions; their pace would be important, but I wonder if it'll be Cassetti instead of Cicinho.

[maro]

Perrotta's red card is such a monumental pain because Spags would clearly have given him the 90 minutes this weekend, allowing someone else to get a breather before the ManUre game. It was such a shocking decision it's hard to resist reading something further into it.

[stefano]

That's a good question regarding what Spags will do without Perrotta. Could you not see him playing Taddei in Perrotta's role with Cassetti on the right wing? That could also allow for Cicinho and his pace to slot into the RB role. Giuly should not start this game as he is too valuable coming off the bench later in the game and offers much less from the get go.

[maro]

I suspect Giuly will also play close to the 90 minutes on Saturday as well. I think Spags would have played Perrotta in a more withdrawn role, anyway, so I'm picking it's Aquilani-Pizza-DDR across the middle of the pitch. The Cassetti thing is interesting, though - Spags has seemed desperate to get him match fit over the past two games. He's played 180 minutes, right? straight off the back of a month out. I don't get it, but I think he has to have been working him into shape for the Manure game.

[stefano]

Maro, I was discussing the ManuU game in my last post. I agree that Giuly will and should get a lot of playing time this Saturday. Which game were you discussing with the Aqui-Pizza-DDR comment? Roma better not overlook this weekend like I am right now.

[maro]

Sorry, yes, that was a bit confusing. I think the Aqui-Pizza-DDR option will be what Spags goes for against ManUre, to keep it tight in the middle of the pitch, hoping that Totti and Mancini may be able to make something happen on their own. The obvious alternative, given the way he's set the boys out this season, would be for Giuly to come in for Perrotta as a straight swap. However, I don't see this happening for all sorts of reasons - as you say, Ludicrous offers us something from the bench; I think Spags will want more defensively than he can give; and I think he'll give Ludicrous the 90 minutes on Saturday in a game in which we do have to go out and get the win. I think it'd be a big call to play Taddei in there against ManUre, especially with Aquilani and Pizza seemingly both fit and ready to go. My sense was that Cassetti and Max as trequartisti was most of all a response to the absence of Perrotta and Taddei together earlier in the season and so it's hard to see the wide roles not being given to Taddei and Mancini/Vooch (given that Vooch will have the weekend off, too).

[aba_bab]

why not a straight swap of Aquilani and Perotta... didnt Aquilani do that in one of the CL games alrdy this year??

[g.smiley]

CAN SOMEBODY DO ME A FUCKIN FAVOR AND BRING GIUSEPPE ROSSI TO ROMA ONCE AND FOR ALL? Jesus Christ!