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Scotlands last genuine world class player?


RobbieD

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14 minutes ago, skippy2015 said:

Ur saying lambert was better than Roy Keane? Thought Dino baggio was excellent also and Edgar davids signed for juve in 97 also

Keane spent most of the season injured

Davids was at Milan doing not a great deal, season after he went to juve and became great

Viera was at first season in arsenal, again in years to come became great

It was only for a short time, that season but lambo was better than them for a time

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Alba is the only one I could say is probably better. He’s better defensively and just as good going forward, and a technically better player all round IMO.

 

As for the other names usually mentioned, Robertson is much better than Alaba, and Marcelo has fallen off a cliff this season to the point that he’s not even the best LB at Real Madrid.

 

Robertson is definitely top two, and I’d say he’s world class while not being elite (aka Messi, Ronaldo, Neymar, Aguero’s level etc).

 

I totally disagree that Alba is better defensively than Robertson. Defensively, I don’t really rate any of Barca’s defence to be honest. Robertson would be first choice LB for me.

 

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Don’t think there’s even a debate that Robertson is world class now.

He’s better than Alba for me and would walk into that Barca team now. If they didn’t make a deal where they had to pay Liverpool a premium for players, they’d be after him.

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Barca’s defence is actually very good but they just have some shocking games at the top level. That’s more a mentality thing IMO and there’s a lot of questions to be asked about Barca’s mentality at the top level anyway, including Messi. Alba is the only top level full back I can actually remember defending well in games.


Nah I don’t really rate any of them that highly defensively. They’re obviously not pish or anything like that but Barca’s whole ethos is ‘you’ll need to get the ball off us first’.
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If mentality is really a problem then it doesn't matter how talented they are. They're not world class. A lack of mentality is just as much of a negative as a lack of ability. Because so often, it leads to the same outcome.

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I think its fair to say Robertson can near enough be seen as world class. I think you have to sustain it at the top level for a couple of seasons for me to seen as that, his first season he wasn't first choice till the end of 2017 though.

Cant really remember much about Lambert at Dortmund so wont comment but only some Scottish folk would ever see Fletcher as world class. A tidy enough player in his position and had a purple patch but certainly not world class for me.

Edited by gannonball
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14 hours ago, skippy2015 said:


If lambert was world class he wouldn’t have ended up at Celtic for 2 million. Also only 40 caps for scotland not that great really. He was a very good player but to say world class is a step to far.

I'm not saying he was definitely world class but I knew some German guys from the Dortmund area and they certainly thought he was during his time in Germany.

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9 hours ago, RobbieD said:

Don’t think there’s even a debate that Robertson is world class now.

He’s better than Alba for me and would walk into that Barca team now. If they didn’t make a deal where they had to pay Liverpool a premium for players, they’d be after him.

It depends on the definition. I think Robertson is probably the best left back in the world but I don’t think he’s a world class player. My definition being players that make the game look ridiculously easy. Maldini was a world class left back. I’m not sure there’s been one since.

Zidane was world class, Messi aside, there’s no attacking midfielder out there anywhere near his level, although no doubt people will claim there are other world class midfielders out there. 

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14 hours ago, Binos said:

Davids was at Milan doing not a great deal, season after he went to juve and became great

At only 23 Davids had already played in the 1995 and 1996 Champions League Finals with Ajax winning the the first and taking the second to penalties.

At that age Lambert was getting relegated with Saint Mirren

 

 

 

Edited by topcat(The most tip top)
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It depends on the definition. I think Robertson is probably the best left back in the world but I don’t think he’s a world class player. My definition being players that make the game look ridiculously easy. Maldini was a world class left back. I’m not sure there’s been one since.

Zidane was world class, Messi aside, there’s no attacking midfielder out there anywhere near his level, although no doubt people will claim there are other world class midfielders out there. 

 

Surely World Class is defined as a player who would get into a hypothetical World XI. If Robertson’s not in it he’s on the bench.

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Sounds like we're all agreeing that the definition of world class is part of the problem. Looking at Robertson thru the various criteria people have  mentioned, I'd say:

  • Has he won just about everything at the top level over a 10-15 year senior career? No.
  • Does he breeze about the pitch making the game look ridiculously easy? No, not in the Maldini way.
  • Would he get into a World XI? Maybe, but probably still doesn't have the rep of Marcelo/Alba etc to secure this place.
  • Would he get into a World squad of, say, 30? Yes.

So 1.5 out of 4 is a pretty good place to be given he's 25 and looks likely to be entering his peak years at a club who also seem likely to be heading for a memorable era.

5 years or so from now the answers could plausibly be yes, no, yes, yes. The very fact the debate refuses to go away suggests he is very much in or round about the world class bracket.

Edited by Gordopolis
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I said a few pages back that if he wasn't World Class, he was definitely close. I can now confirm he is 100% World Class.
20190603_134119.thumb.jpg.e4349a21f0991a4d324563edc9bcc823.jpg
What changed your mind? The CL win?

For me he is world class at crossing a ball in play and is brilliant at the job he is asked to do for Liverpool.

Move him to a different 'top team' without Klopp and he would still be world class at crossing but move down a level generally from how he is currently playing.

It's difficult to put someone into generalised groups such as world class. There's so many variables that can move them in/out of the group quickly, some of which might not be their fault.
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2 minutes ago, charger29 said:

What changed your mind? The CL win?

For me he is world class at crossing a ball in play and is brilliant at the job he is asked to do for Liverpool.

Move him to a different 'top team' without Klopp and he would still be world class at crossing but move down a level generally from how he is currently playing.

It's difficult to put someone into generalised groups such as world class. There's so many variables that can move them in/out of the group quickly, some of which might not be their fault.

Robertson didn't suddenly become a much better player the moment he lifted the trophy, but it will change people's perceptions of him. Ask most people who would get into their World XI and usually the mind goes through who won the last WC, Euros, Champs League etc and they'll cherry pick out of those sides. Robertson probably needs another stellar season to click into place in this bracket. However, I'm quite happy to consider him world class right now.

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Robertson didn't suddenly become a much better player the moment he lifted the trophy, but it will change people's perceptions of him. Ask most people who would get into their World XI and usually the mind goes through who won the last WC, Euros, Champs League etc and they'll cherry pick out of those sides. Robertson probably needs another stellar season to click into place in this bracket. However, I'm quite happy to consider him world class right now.
Agreed. That's why I asked.

If Alisson made two Karius-esque howlers on Saturday then this thread wouldn't be the same imo.

Same thing with Messi tbh. If Higuain or Palacio didn't miss sitters against Germany he'd be a World Cup winner just now. Ditto with the Copa America in 2016 when he was the only one to score his penalty in the final.
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16 hours ago, RobbieD said:

Don’t think there’s even a debate that Robertson is world class now.

He’s better than Alba for me and would walk into that Barca team now. If they didn’t make a deal where they had to pay Liverpool a premium for players, they’d be after him.

Alba is definitely better than Robertson, I wonder how often you watch Barca tbh.  Mendy, sandro and alaba are too.  Outside of that I can't think of any others off the top of my head.  Lucas hernandez perhaps.  He's top half a dozen in Europe right now. 

Marcelo lost his edge a bit, but still a very very very good player, could make a case for him too.

Edited by Kuro
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