Johan Cruyff on Barcelona's striker problem ......
"You can’t sign anybody decent until the first of January and soon after that Saviola will be back in business. When the second phase of the Champions League kicks in then Eto’o and Messi will be preparing their returns, so I don’t see the rush"
....and on Fabio Cannavaro and the European Footballer of the Year Award.
"I respect Cannavaro, but football is more than just defending”, he stressed before highlighting that defenders are apt for the prize: if they’re more complete. “Beckenbauer was an offensive player who played in defense whereas Cannavaro is a stopper: pure and simple.”
......from his weekly column for Barcelona broadsheet ‘La Vanguardia’.
Cruyff is absolutely right about Cannavaro, one of the most overrated players in the entire history of the sport. Cannavaro is just a relentless "stopper" who just uses sheer brute force to knock out opposing players. He practically cracked Dugarry's skull in Euro 2000, Henry's skull in Germany 06, nearly dislocated Zidane's shoulder in the 06 final, and constantly wastes time stopping play by feigning injury (and getting back on the pitch a minute later).