'Gabri' García de la Torre

[Kowalczyk]

That is true - and an interesting point.

Gabri has been criticized a few times this season. There were actually people on this forum who said that he was absolute shit and a 'bad buy'. I've always disagreed on that: Gabri is a fantastic 'box to box' player, a great tackler and I've always been able to see that he is the 'concrete between the bricks' in this team (just like Davids).

But, having said that, he was not as good on the ball as I thought he would be. His passing has been very poor at times, and the guy can't shoot on target to save the planet (Pienaar revisited). Very useful player, and a hard worker, but not great when in possession of the ball. That was my opinion. Fair enough, 'cos let's face it: had he been a good tackler, a good 'box to box' player and a fantastic passer and goalscorer, he would have been the star of FC Barcelona... and not a player of Ajax.

But in recent weeks... Wow. He tackles better than ever, intercepts loads of passes and he constantly chases his opponent, but he also starts to give good little passes. If he starts scoring goals like yesterday on a regular basis, he really is a star.

I don't expect the latter to happen, by the way. I like Gabri, but he's not a 10-goal midfielder (once again: just like Davids).

K.

[Blind3]

I'm more than happy with the Gabri buy. Nothing wrong with a side having what they call a mucker and grinder in the ice hockey world. Ajax is always at its best when they've one or two players who'll willingly do the dirty jobs and lots and lots of running. A good supporting cast guy in a cast that includes lots of skil. Skill players can always do with guys like Gabri , Davids, or Stam tackling, bodying an opponent , or putting the heavy boot in ; and not letting their teammates get kicked off the park . Huntelaar , Babel, Sneijder, Perez, Emanuelson , etc... are better for the presence of the likes of Gabri. :xyxthumbs:

[aveslacker]

Will he be with the club next year? How long is is his contract?

[Kowalczyk]

Will he be with the club next year? How long is is his contract?

http://www.ajax-usa.com/news/2005-2006/ ... -2009.html

Two more seasons! :xyxthumbs:

I think he'll be very happy to stay. My impression is that he's quite happy over here. There will probably be some interest from Spain, but not from the major clubs. And I'm pretty sure that he will prefer a longer stay with Ajax over a transfer to Espanyol, Real Mallorca or Osasuna, especially if Ajax qualify for the CL.

K.

[aveslacker]

Will he be with the club next year? How long is is his contract?

http://www.ajax-usa.com/news/2005-2006/ ... -2009.html

Two more seasons! :xyxthumbs:

I think he'll be very happy to stay. My impression is that he's quite happy over here. There will probably be some interest from Spain, but not from the major clubs. And I'm pretty sure that he will prefer a longer stay with Ajax over a transfer to Espanyol, Real Mallorca or Osasuna, especially if Ajax qualify for the CL.

K.

Thanks for that. :headbang:

[Kowalczyk]

F*ck's sake... Gabri has been suspended for four games, of which one game conditional. Which means, in practice, three games. Which means that he's f*cked for the two Heerenveen games, plus - if we advance - the away leg against AZ or Twente.

That sucks!

K.

[ajaxusa]

What exactly did he do? And... why? "Tried to hit" is all I've read so far.

[Cedric]

From the highlights I've seen, Gabri did hit De Zeeuw who had just pulled Gabri' shirt...

[Kowalczyk]

He should have punched him a bit harder, so that he could have gone on vacation... Now he has to stay until the last play-off game... :00001757.gif:

K.

[SPL]

Signed an extension to 2011 so obviously he likes Amsterdam( who wouldn't)

[Kowalczyk]

That is bloody fantastic news. Very well done by Van Geel to talk to this dude and offer him an extension now. Excellent work.

K.

[Blind3]

Despite the occasional daft moment , I still like the buy on balance. You can't teach experience , especially top league level experience , and he has it in spades. Also, he seems to relish the dirty jobs; tracking back,man marking, put in the tackle ; and plays with emotion . Very happy to hear of the extension ; especially after rumours of him to Liverpool ,etc... Wonder if this will be a signal to Thiago Motta. I've seen Motta's name in print.

[Philippe]

any news about his injury (news, not rumors) ?

[Kowalczyk]

any news about his injury (news, not rumors) ?

His injury is a kneecap/menicus injury, which appears to be more persistent and serious than it initially seemed. There is liquid in Gabri's knee and the club are starting to fear that a few days of rest won't be enough.

In fact: surgery may be required. And the bad thing about surgery of the outer meniscus is that the estimated recovery time for such an operation is three months.

So there's a bit of a dilemma here: should Ajax give Gabri some more rest (with the risk that it is only wasting time?) or should he go under the knife a.s.a.p.?

It doesn't look good. I am not counting on him for Wednesday, that's for sure. Expect Delorge to play again (he did alright).

K.

[Philippe]

So ,I assume that we may be still looking for another midfielder.

It's a strange situation if you remember the time when not so long ago we were a team of midfielders.

[Kowalczyk]

So ,I assume that we may be still looking for another midfielder.

Yup. This has been confirmed by Martin van Geel, too: Ajax are still looking for a central midfielder. This has nothing to do with Gabri's injury, by the way: it was already the case before Gabri's injury.

It's a strange situation if you remember the time when not so long ago we were a team of midfielders.

Very true... Gabri - Sneijder - Davids. What a perfect midfield. But for now we've lost all three of them, in all three cases for reasons pretty much beyond Ajax's control. A typical case of 'shit happens', but fact is that we have a problem in midfield, for sure.

K.

[Kowalczyk]

Fantastic news on Ajax Netwerk: both Maduro and Gabri are fit and available for Wednesday. They trained with the squad, 100% intensity, without problems.

Maduro saw the doctor yesterday and the conclusion was that his minor concussion was nothing serious. No damage whatsoever. He was officially fit today.

Gabri will undergo a final test tomorrow, but it looks good. No more liquid in his knee. No more pain.

This is very, very good news.

K.

[Van basten]

This is very, very good news.

K.

you can say it again

[Philippe]

you can say that's a relief ! I fell much better about the game in Prague now !

[Blind3]

Don't get me wrong. I'm happy Lazarus Garcia de la Torre has made a remarkable recovery . Ecstatic in fact! I just wonder how you go from fluid , meniscus problem , and possible three months out to fit within twenty four hours ?

Ajax hasn't retained Dr. Van Quack and Associates to tend to their unfit I hope.

[headercase]

Could the original reports have been a panic rush to judgement ? With Davids out we cant afford to lose experenced mids. and do well in CL.

[Kowalczyk]

Gabri is still recovering from an injury and will not be fit for Sunday's home game against Roda. He also missed the lfirst league game of the new season at Willem II.

Personally, I thought the midfield against Willem II (Sno-Lindgren-Urby) was too defensive. We need at least one creative player in midfield, so I would say: play Aissati from the start!

Lindgren - Aissati - Urby sounds good to me. Sno on the bench.

K.

[Van basten]

Gabri Unhappy With Van Basten

Spanish midfielder Gabri has expressed his dismay with Ajax coach, Marco van Basten's decision to omit him from the starting XI for yesterday's away match against Heracles...
Eredivisie giants Ajax faced Almelo side Heracles yesterday evening and manager Marco van Basten surprisingly decided to bench Spanish midfielder Gabri. The former Barcelona star has never missed a match since joining Ajax in 2006, except the occasions when he was suspended or injured.

The holding midfielder was substituted only minutes before the break in last week's Eredivisie match against NEC and manager Van Basten even decided to leave him out of the starting XI for yesterday's away match, much to his own dismay.

"I don't know why Van Basten opted to bench me," said Gabri after the match. "He said that he benched me for tactical reasons and I have to accept his explanation."

"Van Basten is the boss, so he decides who's part of the starting XI and who's not. I accept that. However, there's no doubt about it that I'm not happy with his decisions. I'm far from satisfied with the current situation," ended the holding midfielder.

[Kowalczyk]

That little interview is a very inaccurate representation of what Gabri actually said. I actually saw the interview and he was a real gentleman. He said that he was very happy at Ajax and that he totally respected Van Basten's decision. However, as a professional footballer, he said he wasn't happy to be on the bench. His intention was to work even harder and to win his spot back. He absolutely did not say that he was "unhappy with Van Basten" or anything. He constantly repeated that he is very happy at Ajax and that all the people at the club seem to appreciate and respect him.

K.

[DanK]

Ah yes, the media's interpretation. Gotta love 'em.