A series looking at modern football, the second in a three part piece on individualism within football.
As I am sure you already know
Cristiano Ronaldo has scored 21 goals in 14 appearances, making him more
efficient in front of goal that a lot of full squads in Europe’s top leagues.
If there is one man who epitomises the power of the individual in football, it
is Cristiano Ronaldo. He even has his own website completely dedicated to his
record breaking, earth shattering statistics. Leo Messi on the other hand, is
just as clinical in his awe inspiring statistics. These two players, like no
others before them, have been subjected to a complete analysis by statistically
based judgments
.
The rise in American style
statistical analysis has risen, hand in hand with the current trend of
individual prowess. The rise in numerical values being put on to footballers
has made it far easier for us to compare and contrast. It even makes it easier
for us to compare modern players with old ones, allowing for contextual differences;
perhaps this has increased the cult status of many older players, Just as it
has with our contemporary players. Although that conversation is for a
different time. My basic point is that now we can easily judge one player
against another, it creates individual competition, which means there is an
individual who wins. Companies such as Opta and Football Radar now sell there
in-depth databases of football statistics for enormous amounts of money, to
betting companies, football clubs and punters alike.
Let us not pretend that
statistics do not help us evaluate an overall team performance. Possession has
often through the annuls of football time been used to defend a team who has
lost to a more pragmatic outfit. Also more and more it seems that the corner
count is becoming a game defining statistic if you ask a sullen Premier League
manager. However, we don’t quite marvel these as we do with a goals to game
ratio or even shots on target. Mario Balotelli is currently being derided for
his shots to goals ratio, which brings me to raise a point as to why
individualism isn't all glorifying fun and games. The trend in post-Suarez
Liverpool thinking is that all the problems and draws can be put on one
striker, because he is not as good as his predecessor who was revered and
believed to have won Liverpool games on his own. Balotelli has become a victim
of individualism just as much as Ronaldo has reaped the rewards.
The concept that one player loses
a game on his own makes just as little sense, and is just as ludicrous as the
idea that one player can win a game on his own. I remember a friend of mine, a
Liverpool fan telling me about a chant they used to sing, it was sung to tune
of ‘Yellow Submarine’, (who would have thought Liverpool fans use Beatles
songs) and it went along the lines of;
(Chorus)
We all dream of a team of Carragher,
A team of Carraghers,
A team of Carraghers,]
(Verse)
Number one is Carragher,
Number two is Carragher,
Number three is
Carragher.
And so on till they get to number
eleven, meaning no substitutes on the off chance that one of the eleven Carraghers
ever gets injured. Not only did this strike me as what would probably be the
worst Liverpool team ever, but highlighted a deeper complacency amongst the
fans. It takes a far greater skill set to win a football match than just being
able to get In the way of the ball, foul without getting caught and scoring own
goals. Having two Jamie Carraghers is great, having four could be useful for a
more pragmatic manager, but it leaves a lot of areas of the team without the
quality they need.
Of course, this chant is not a
serious proposal to the Liverpool manager from the fans, but I think it is
important to note that you couldn’t have a team of any one player, whether its
Ronaldo, Carragher or Cruyff. I know this argument goes some way in denying the
brilliance of Dutch ‘Totaalvoetbal’,
but it is more meant to highlight that a reliance on one player and his skill
set is a dangerous path to egotistical, messiah based teams, and god forbid continuing
the journey of the Ballon D’or to MVP.
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