Totally Taddei Thursday: The choice

I know this discussion has been going on for quite some time now. And it will probably stay on this blog for a little while longer. After all, it ain’t over till the fat (or old in Serie A’s case) lady sings. There’s no point in drawing conclusions after this post, this week or even this year. Titles, national cups, championships, World Cups etc. are won by numbers, not predictions.

Over the last few weeks, both parties (realists-dreamers) have had their fair share of spoils. The first ten games, the unbeaten streak, the impenetrable defense, the spirit of the team are the cup of tea for the dreamers. The five draws against (minor) opposition, the obvious weak spots like leftback and vice-Pjanic and Juventus’ incredible current winning streak are being used by the realists as gunpowder for their weapons of mass-realism. Mind you, this is not a matter about who is right or who is wrong. Right now, everyone’s right. Yes, this Roma can challenge for top 3 and more. They sit in second place (mainly thanks to an incredible start) after 16 rounds and look like Juve’s only real opponent for the Scudetto since all of Napoli, Inter and especially Milan seem too inconsistent in results and quality. In short: The dreamers got the numbers at their side.

Enter the realists. Who quite frankly just want Europe next season to start with. Champions League was the main goal with Europa League as an acceptable plan B. EL almost seems in the bag at this point so they expect a CL-battle until the very end with Napoli, Inter and Fiorentina. Their reasons to non-believe in a Scudetto? The recent draw-fetish of Garcia and co, the four goals leaked in last three games and the tumble down to second with Napoli breathing in our necks. Roma’s last six games show a dry 1-5-0. It reads like a midtable team while ironically, Roma only played midtable teams apart from Fiorentina. Roma went from a +5 advantage to a -5 deficit. Are the players able to cope with the pressure of no1 for a long period of time? Seems like also the realists got the numbers at their side.

So this means a stalemate right? 1-1, ugh another draw. I personally am a mixture of both. Dreamer after every win, realist after every draw. It’s like Roma always find a way to keep your feet on the ground. To let you know they’re not as imposing as we all thought after round 10. Because this is not the Roma we all know and love. We barely do it the easy way. Juventus are a machine these days, for almost three years now they have been building a team made to win trophies. Roma on the other hand have started a new life, with a bunch of new players and a new coach. People predicted them to fight for top five with the occasional surprise package and hick-up here and there.

You could say realists want to protect themselves from disappointment when May rolls around. Or that dreamers are too emotional and easily get carried away. All I can say is: Find the perfect balance. Dream when we as tifosi are entitled to do so, after a 2-1 against Fiorentina or a 0-3 bashing of Inter. But also face reality and recognize this team still has its flaws, after draws against Sassuolo or Cagliari. However, the most important thing to remember is that these two are opinions, phantasms. Both are based not only on numbers or the Serie A table but also feelings and personal believes. Meaning they are not absolute. It doesn’t matter ‘what’ you see but ‘how’ you see things. Like I said, at this point no one’s right or wrong because it is still too early. But that doesn’t mean you can’t choose a side and exchange ideas on this blog. In a respectful way of course, as we at CDT have always strived for.

Curiously, seven out of Roma’s next nine games will be played at our hometurf Olimpico (including Coppa and the derby). Of course, one of those two away games is the famous Juventus nutcracker. But first things first: Last-placed Catantia at home. A match where both dreamers AND realists believe in a big win. I hope everyone can at least agree on that.

Ps: Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve both are on a Tuesday this year which means the Totti Tuesday Roadshow 2013 will unfortunately stop here.Though I might put up a surprise post during the Holidays, who knows. Nonetheless, I already wish you all a merry Christmas, a happy Giallorosso New Year and the best of luck in 2014 with everything Roma-related as well as your private lives. Arriverderci!