La Liga (Spanish League) Prediction Thread 2023/24

[Furious 7]

Now looking at what happened in this week's match against Sociedad, it's good to see that they're already preparing for Bayern because Ancelotti's massive rotation gives us hope that they'll be focused in this semi-final.

I am actually still quite optimistic about what Madrid will show in the Champions League even though Bayern is a big force but I am still confident that Madrid will be able to win in this match. But indeed as you say this will not be an easy match because after all at this time Bayern will still exert their strength especially this is the only competition left for them.

Real Madrid being safe at the top of the league is indeed an advantage for them to give full focus on their Champions League semi-final game. The rotational decision can give benefits to keep the players staying fit, but Ancelotti needs to make sure the players not losing their rhythm of their game without gametime for some times. Bayern can also give full focus on the semi-final because their remaining games in Bundesliga are meaningless.

Real Madrid must not forget that they haven't secure the La Liga title yet. They need to secure the title sooner, in case they reach the Champions League final, therefore they can put full focus on the Champions League trophy. Bayern is a strong team, but I think Real Madrid have capability to beat them, considering Madrid have a stable form throughout the season.

That's one of the ingenuity that Ancelotti did from the strategy he did, even though when rotating their game was a little weak when playing against Sociedad but it didn't stop them from getting 3 points in the end and I think that's a good thing where they get 3 points while resting some of their players so they can still play all out against Bayern with full strength.

For La Liga the chances of winning are very good because they only need 2 more matches to ensure that the trophy is at the Bernabeu so their focus now is nothing but the Champions League and with the full strength they have and with Militao ready to play because he has recovered from the ACL that kept him out for a long time then now I think Madrid will be confident in the Champions League.

Now looking at what happened in this week's match against Sociedad, it's good to see that they're already preparing for Bayern because Ancelotti's massive rotation gives us hope that they'll be focused in this semi-final.

I am actually still quite optimistic about what Madrid will show in the Champions League even though Bayern is a big force but I am still confident that Madrid will be able to win in this match. But indeed as you say this will not be an easy match because after all at this time Bayern will still exert their strength especially this is the only competition left for them.

If Bayern Munich is consistent in the Bundesliga like previous seasons, it will be quite difficult for all of us to predict the result of the semifinal match versus Real Madrid. With Bayern Munich reputation in the Bundesliga uncertain this season, and was also defeated by Lazio in the previous round, we can easily judge the results of the match based on existing facts. Real Madrid previously eliminated Manchester City, which we all agree is that Pep Guardiola squad is the favorite. When Ancelotti and his squad managed to beat Manchester City, who were stronger, then beating Bayern Munich, whose performance was erratic, could have been done more easily. This simple assumption seems quite realistic, but we also realize that Bayern Munich is not an easy opponent. The experience of Tuchel squad in the Champions League is an added value for them, here Ancelotti and his squad must be fully alert to the pressure they can create.

Regardless of how they are in domestic competitions I don't think it can be used as a reference that they will lose because in the end when taking the example between Manchester City and Madrid some time ago also Manchester City in the end can be said to be better than Madrid but in the end 2x90 minutes in 2 legs it did not go well for them because in the end it was determined in the match and their mentality when the match went to penalties.
That is something to watch out for even though until now Bayern have been quite bad in terms of performance but in matches they are still quite good and possession of the ball especially on both sides they are still quite dominant.

[red4slash]

The first half between Barcelona and Valencia ended and at the moment the score is still an advantage for Valencia where a goal from Fermin Lopez was immediately paid for 2 goals by Valencia but indeed the advantage is still in favour of Barcelona now .
An unwanted red card came at the end of the first half as Valencia goalkeeper had to take an early bath due to VAR overruling the previous card decision and of course that made Barcelona day as they will definitely utilise their numerical advantage in the second 45 minutes .

The problem is that they are still having problems in attack because looking at what happened in the first half this time i think we can see that even though their possession was very good and but their finishing was poor even for finishing in the first half Valencia was much better.
In the second half, there are still some options for players like Joao Felix or Pedri that Xavi can bring in to add to the attacking power that Barcelona has now because by looking at what happened in this first half i think they are still quite monotonous in terms of attacks carried out .

[jaberwock]

Yeah, but they probably don't even need the two victories. It would mean that Barcelona has to deliver and what is the chance that they do? Xavi has been trying his best, but the truth is that they are not up to the game that they should be. It is still subpar what they are delivering and I think that it will remain like that for a pretty long time. Real Madrid is Real Madrid, but Barcelona is not the same club they used to be in the past.

The two wins Real Madrid needed to win the title at the same time Barcelona also won against Valencia and Girona. If Barcelona loses, then Real Madrid can celebrate.
Facing Valencia, maybe Barcelona can win even though the chance of winning is still 50:50, when facing Girona the result is still not possible to say that they will be able to win.

I agree that Barcelona now is different from Barcelona then and Real Madrid is still very consistent from season to season.
There have been many declines in Barcelona that require special attention to make Barcelona now like Barcelona then.
This opportunity has been given again to Xavi by club officials to do his best.

I feel like they celebrated their title already and just waiting for the official results at this point. They knew that they would be the league winners a month or two ago easily, nobody could go against them and feels like they are going to be good enough eventually. We just need to make sure that we can't really see any changes at any given moment. I personally believe that we can make sure that we can't really make it work one way or another way for other teams to get in.

There is no scenario where Real loses all their games and Barcelona wins all their games, we are going to see Real win it all and we know it and if we know it then they already know it for sure. I personally believe that we just need to let it be and not really get any bigger than what we have already. They probably already celebrated it.

[Raflesia]

I agree, the best thing I can hope for from the Barcelona vs Valencia match is Barcelona getting a home win.
Barcelona really needs this win so that they can reclaim second place which was previously taken by Girona, but Barcelona has a good chance of taking it back especially if they play very well and win the match.

Seeing from the course of the match in the first half even though they played home but it looks like they are still very troubled by Valencia's counterattack this time.
The 1-2 score was the end of the match in this first half and we can see that even though Barcelona controlled almost half of the field for now, their finishing did not go well which made them still struggling to outperform Valencia even though they were convincing in terms of attack.

In the second half they had the advantage of numbers after Giorgi Mamardashvili was red carded in the final minutes of the first half which makes sure Barcelona will try harder in locking up Valencia's defense but on the other hand surely Valencia will also not remain silent because with the devensife scheme they have at this time then most likely the bus parking scheme like the first half will continue to be done and look for momentum with a quick counterattack so that they can make at least a draw or victory in today's match.

[liuka]

I agree, the best thing I can hope for from the Barcelona vs Valencia match is Barcelona getting a home win.
Barcelona really needs this win so that they can reclaim second place which was previously taken by Girona, but Barcelona has a good chance of taking it back especially if they play very well and win the match.

I have no hesitation in saying Barcelona will win this match, that's clear because Barcelona is a better team than Valencia. It is honestly still feared that the defeat in the Champions League and the defeat against Real Madrid in El Clasico will affect Barcelona's performance today, but in any case Barcelona is the favorite to win at home against Valencia. The depth of Barcelona's squad was quite good in this match, this was reflected in the line-up that Xavi had since the first half.

The first half ended with a score of 1-2. I think Barcelona will be at an advantage with the number of players in the second half because in the second half Valencia will play with 10 players after Mamardashvili received a red card in the 45th minute. Barcelona is certainly chasing victory in this match and their chances are big enough to equalize and turn things around in second round.

Statistically, Barcelona was superior in possession of the ball and also had a lot of shots in the first half. Xavi must be able to give instructions to his players to appear more aggressive in the second half because if they succeed in pressing Valencia in the second half then it will not be difficult for Barcelona to turn things around. Valencia will definitely play defensively because they played with 10 players in the second half. Valencia also really needs points to reduce the points gap with the teams above their ranking.

[Richbased]

I agree, the best thing I can hope for from the Barcelona vs Valencia match is Barcelona getting a home win.
Barcelona really needs this win so that they can reclaim second place which was previously taken by Girona, but Barcelona has a good chance of taking it back especially if they play very well and win the match.

I have no hesitation in saying Barcelona will win this match, that's clear because Barcelona is a better team than Valencia. It is honestly still feared that the defeat in the Champions League and the defeat against Real Madrid in El Clasico will affect Barcelona's performance today, but in any case Barcelona is the favorite to win at home against Valencia. The depth of Barcelona's squad was quite good in this match, this was reflected in the line-up that Xavi had since the first half.

Barcelona versus Valencia match is already ongoing now and to be frank Barcelona doesn't have a solid defense at all because they over lapse too much giving Valencia opportunity to score, though Barcelona open the score but Valencia equalized and won by 1:2 in the first half, G. Mamardashvili got a red card just immediately before halftime and it is really a very big set back for Valencia.

The second half starts and Barcelona levelled the goal in 50th minutes goal scored by one time Bayern Munich goal scoring machine Robert Lewandowski and it looks like the Valencia side is under serious pressure now and I wouldn't be surprised if Barcelona scores another goal. The Red card really destabilized Valencia and they are becoming too porous. Red card really affects a teams morale and I can see that Valencia have lost the morale they used in playing during the first half.

[Rampagoe004]

There is no problem about teams getting relegated because that is the rule because after all, any team will have a bad performance and if that happens then any team has a chance of getting relegated. But, what is not good is that if big teams are relegated then it will not be good or fun at all. But yes, so far it has been only the mediocre teams that have been relegated and even, team like Sevilla who have been very bad in the last two seasons, but the fact remains that Sevilla have managed to improve their position in the La Liga table. Therefore, in terms of Almeria, Granada and Cadiz being relegated I think it's only natural, because they're mediocre teams.

Yes I agree with you. The teams that are in the relegation zone are mediocre teams and to be honest I rarely see strong teams from the previous season being relegated this season. I think we have to define what a strong team is. Because if that strong team is Real Madrid, Barcelona or Atletico Madrid then I think it would be very impossible for them to be relegated. I define a strong team here as a team that is well known to people or a team that was in the top 10 in the previous season. And we can see how they perform next season.

[Ahli38]

The first half ended with a score of 1-2. I think Barcelona will be at an advantage with the number of players in the second half because in the second half Valencia will play with 10 players after Mamardashvili received a red card in the 45th minute. Barcelona is certainly chasing victory in this match and their chances are big enough to equalize and turn things around in second round.

Statistically, Barcelona was superior in possession of the ball and also had a lot of shots in the first half. Xavi must be able to give instructions to his players to appear more aggressive in the second half because if they succeed in pressing Valencia in the second half then it will not be difficult for Barcelona to turn things around. Valencia will definitely play defensively because they played with 10 players in the second half. Valencia also really needs points to reduce the points gap with the teams above their ranking.

The second half has entered the 76th minute and the current score is 2-2. I hope Barcelona can score again with the advantage they have. Both in terms of number of players, position as host and in terms of performance, Barcelona is actually far above Valencia. But Valencia is actually holding up pretty well. So Barcelona is still having a little difficulty here. There is still time left in the second half and yes, I am sure the Barcelona squad will succeed in scoring at least 1 more goal and win this match.

[skarais]

~~~

The first half ended with a score of 1-2. I think Barcelona will be at an advantage with the number of players in the second half because in the second half Valencia will play with 10 players after Mamardashvili received a red card in the 45th minute. Barcelona is certainly chasing victory in this match and their chances are big enough to equalize and turn things around in second round.

Statistically, Barcelona was superior in possession of the ball and also had a lot of shots in the first half. Xavi must be able to give instructions to his players to appear more aggressive in the second half because if they succeed in pressing Valencia in the second half then it will not be difficult for Barcelona to turn things around. Valencia will definitely play defensively because they played with 10 players in the second half. Valencia also really needs points to reduce the points gap with the teams above their ranking.

Barcelona tried hard to win this match, of course because Xavi's plan had the potential to fail due to the good performance shown by Valencia in defense and counter attacks. Barcelona have now equalized, but they are aiming to win by dominating attacks and possession of the ball. Valencia will only defend and counterattack when Barcelona loses the ball, but even that is very dangerous.

Barcelona still has a chance to win this match because they really tried through the many opportunities they created. It's true, currently Barcelona is having a hard time scoring a third goal because of Valencia's good defense, but I'm sure they will score soon.

[Ryu_Ar1]

The problem is that they are still having problems in attack because looking at what happened in the first half this time i think we can see that even though their possession was very good and but their finishing was poor even for finishing in the first half Valencia was much better.
In the second half, there are still some options for players like Joao Felix or Pedri that Xavi can bring in to add to the attacking power that Barcelona has now because by looking at what happened in this first half i think they are still quite monotonous in terms of attacks carried out .

At the start of the second half there was hope as Lewandowski scored a quick goal to make it 2-2 but by the end of the second half the score still hadn't increased.

Barcelona continued to try to attack but Valencia's defense was quite tight even though they continued to be attacked from every side but indeed they were still quite solid and I quite appreciated what they did in today's match. But with this result it certainly won't be too favorable for Barcelona because however even though they have lost the momentum to get the trophy but they have to secure the current 2nd position which Girona can still overtake and indeed a draw score with the advantage of players is certainly not too expected of them because apart from accelerating Madrid to become champions this also makes them hassle to maintain the runner up this season.
Even so, there is still enough time left where they are just entering the crucial phase where the end of the match sometimes becomes a momentum that can be maximized. Now it depends on how hard they work because if this is a draw I think it's a loss for Barcelona although I really like this scheme because Madrid will be quick to party

[Silence Scream]

There is no problem about teams getting relegated because that is the rule because after all, any team will have a bad performance and if that happens then any team has a chance of getting relegated. But, what is not good is that if big teams are relegated then it will not be good or fun at all. But yes, so far it has been only the mediocre teams that have been relegated and even, team like Sevilla who have been very bad in the last two seasons, but the fact remains that Sevilla have managed to improve their position in the La Liga table. Therefore, in terms of Almeria, Granada and Cadiz being relegated I think it's only natural, because they're mediocre teams.

Yes I agree with you. The teams that are in the relegation zone are mediocre teams and to be honest I rarely see strong teams from the previous season being relegated this season. I think we have to define what a strong team is. Because if that strong team is Real Madrid, Barcelona or Atletico Madrid then I think it would be very impossible for them to be relegated. I define a strong team here as a team that is well known to people or a team that was in the top 10 in the previous season. And we can see how they perform next season.

Their performance this season will be critical for next year. Of course, I am not talking about Real Madrid, Barcelona or Atletico Madrid, but if Girona cannot protect its players, it may be in the relegation zone in the coming years. Maintaining the success they achieved this year already affects their future investment.

[Ahli38]

Barcelona tried hard to win this match, of course because Xavi's plan had the potential to fail due to the good performance shown by Valencia in defense and counter attacks. Barcelona have now equalized, but they are aiming to win by dominating attacks and possession of the ball. Valencia will only defend and counterattack when Barcelona loses the ball, but even that is very dangerous.

Barcelona still has a chance to win this match because they really tried through the many opportunities they created. It's true, currently Barcelona is having a hard time scoring a third goal because of Valencia's good defense, but I'm sure they will score soon.

In the end, Barcelona managed to score another goal in the 82nd minute. And Lewandowski scored 2 goals in this match. And now the score has changed to 3-2. And yes, this is good news and also a pretty good result because in the end Barcelona was able to get full points from this match. Honestly, in the first half I was really worried that Barcelona would lose. But after Valencia lost one player, I thought Barcelona would score several goals in the second half and finally that happened. With this, Barcelona will remain in 2nd place. And yes, Girona will still be in 3rd place. I hope Barcelona doesn't let their guard down at the last minute.

[liuka]

Barcelona tried hard to win this match, of course because Xavi's plan had the potential to fail due to the good performance shown by Valencia in defense and counter attacks. Barcelona have now equalized, but they are aiming to win by dominating attacks and possession of the ball. Valencia will only defend and counterattack when Barcelona loses the ball, but even that is very dangerous.

Barcelona still has a chance to win this match because they really tried through the many opportunities they created. It's true, currently Barcelona is having a hard time scoring a third goal because of Valencia's good defense, but I'm sure they will score soon.

Well, as I said, Barcelona managed to come back in the second half and that was quite appropriate because the score was 3-2. Barcelona must maintain this advantage because the match has entered the final minutes of the match. Lewandowksi managed to score 2 goals in the second half which enabled Barcelona to turn things around. Barcelona will automatically return to second place in the standings if they manage to get 3 points.

This victory will also bring Barcelona back to winning ways. I think Barcelona will be able to close the season in second place because they will maintain second place from the pressure put on them by Girona. Btw Lewandowksi managed to record 14 goals this season and that is certainly quite good considering he missed many matches due to injury this season.

[entertheabyss]

Barcelona tried hard to win this match, of course because Xavi's plan had the potential to fail due to the good performance shown by Valencia in defense and counter attacks. Barcelona have now equalized, but they are aiming to win by dominating attacks and possession of the ball. Valencia will only defend and counterattack when Barcelona loses the ball, but even that is very dangerous.

Barcelona still has a chance to win this match because they really tried through the many opportunities they created. It's true, currently Barcelona is having a hard time scoring a third goal because of Valencia's good defense, but I'm sure they will score soon.

Xavi Hernandez have always persuade his players to do their best because it's never easy watching them becoming the very best team against oppositions. Xavi Hernandez should encourage his players because they're having slim chances of winning games when it comes to average teams. Valencia was leading but due to the Red card given to their goal keeper before the end of first halve, that was the beginning of their weakness. Barcelona won their game against Valencia. It was a tough night at Camp Nou because the visitors came prepared and deliver an excellent job towards the hosts.

[skarais]

~~~

Well, as I said, Barcelona managed to come back in the second half and that was quite appropriate because the score was 3-2. Barcelona must maintain this advantage because the match has entered the final minutes of the match. Lewandowksi managed to score 2 goals in the second half which enabled Barcelona to turn things around. Barcelona will automatically return to second place in the standings if they manage to get 3 points.

This victory will also bring Barcelona back to winning ways. I think Barcelona will be able to close the season in second place because they will maintain second place from the pressure put on them by Girona. Btw Lewandowksi managed to record 14 goals this season and that is certainly quite good considering he missed many matches due to injury this season.

Yes, you are right. In the end, Barcelona's hard work was completed with a deserved victory. Lewandowski scored two additional goals in the second half, as well as his third goal in the second half. He had good form in this match and his last goal was proof of his quality in taking free kicks. Lewandowski has registered 15 goals as of April for La Liga, but is still too far away to hope to compete at the top of the top scorers table.

Barcelona really deserved to win this match even though they had difficulty breaking down Valencia's strong defense. Barcelona didn't give up and they continued to try and increase the pressure. Lewandowski really succeeded in being the hero of the victory and he deserved to be named the best player in this match. The red card was the reason why Valencia's performance dropped in the second half, but they really frustrated Barcelona before Lewandowski ended the match with his hat trick for a score of 4-2.

~~~

Xavi Hernandez have always persuade his players to do their best because it's never easy watching them becoming the very best team against oppositions. Xavi Hernandez should encourage his players because they're having slim chances of winning games when it comes to average teams. Valencia was leading but due to the Red card given to their goal keeper before the end of first halve, that was the beginning of their weakness. Barcelona won their game against Valencia. It was a tough night at Camp Nou because the visitors came prepared and deliver an excellent job towards the hosts.

At least Xavi deserves to be grateful because his team's strategy and performance produced sweet results, but he almost failed to win if Pedri didn't stop Valencia's counterattack for his third goal.

[Zlantann]

Barcelona tried hard to win this match, of course because Xavi's plan had the potential to fail due to the good performance shown by Valencia in defense and counter attacks. Barcelona have now equalized, but they are aiming to win by dominating attacks and possession of the ball. Valencia will only defend and counterattack when Barcelona loses the ball, but even that is very dangerous.

Barcelona still has a chance to win this match because they really tried through the many opportunities they created. It's true, currently Barcelona is having a hard time scoring a third goal because of Valencia's good defense, but I'm sure they will score soon.

Xavi Hernandez have always persuade his players to do their best because it's never easy watching them becoming the very best team against oppositions. Xavi Hernandez should encourage his players because they're having slim chances of winning games when it comes to average teams. Valencia was leading but due to the Red card given to their goal keeper before the end of first halve, that was the beginning of their weakness. Barcelona won their game against Valencia. It was a tough night at Camp Nou because the visitors came prepared and deliver an excellent job towards the hosts.

Barcelona would have lost the game if not for the red card against Mamardashvili in the first half. Valencia would have been able to maintain their lead till the end since they had standard defense and midfield. In the second half, Barca was able to capitalize on the absence of one player to keep mounting pressure until Valencia's defense couldn't handle it. Barca was just fortunate to win this game and the result will put more pressure on Real Madrid. For Valencia, this loss is a big blow to their determination to feature in the Europa League next season. A win would have given them an edge since clubs like Athletic Club and Real Sociedad lost their matches while Real Betis played a draw. But the fight for the European competitions is still and it is not over until the league ends.  

[Alpha Marine]

Xavi Hernandez should encourage his players because they have slim chances of winning games when it comes to average teams.

One of Barcelona's problems is playing against low block. They struggle to play against any team that is good defensively and hits them on the counter. The problem is, that most average teams in La Liga play this way. There was a time this season when they won so many games with a 1-0 scoreline. They struggled to score goals and that is because they don't have players that can dribble through the defence and attract most of the defenders to themselves leaving space for other players to open up and score.
Barcelona needs a lot of things if they're to be better next season and it's not looking like they'll get those things. A DM alone won't solve the problem, even though it would reduce it, but there are no world-class DMs in the world right now that can play as a single pivot excellently that would come cheap and Barcelona doesn't have the money to get an expensive player.

[snipie]

Barcelona would have lost the game if not for the red card against Mamardashvili in the first half. Valencia would have been able to maintain their lead till the end since they had standard defense and midfield.

That red card ruined Valencia advantage and with Lewandowski being in form and concentrated, he was able to flip the game in the side of his team Barcelona after being late with one goal. He scored a hattrick and 16 goals in total in La Liga which is still far from his record with Bayern Munich.
Anyway this victory gave Barcelona a chance to chase Real Madrid even though they are far from them.

[ShowOff]

Xavi Hernandez have always persuade his players to do their best because it's never easy watching them becoming the very best team against oppositions. Xavi Hernandez should encourage his players because they're having slim chances of winning games when it comes to average teams. Valencia was leading but due to the Red card given to their goal keeper before the end of first halve, that was the beginning of their weakness. Barcelona won their game against Valencia. It was a tough night at Camp Nou because the visitors came prepared and deliver an excellent job towards the hosts.

Barcelona would have lost the game if not for the red card against Mamardashvili in the first half. Valencia would have been able to maintain their lead till the end since they had standard defense and midfield. In the second half, Barca was able to capitalize on the absence of one player to keep mounting pressure until Valencia's defense couldn't handle it. Barca was just fortunate to win this game and the result will put more pressure on Real Madrid. For Valencia, this loss is a big blow to their determination to feature in the Europa League next season. A win would have given them an edge since clubs like Athletic Club and Real Sociedad lost their matches while Real Betis played a draw. But the fight for the European competitions is still and it is not over until the league ends.

You could certainly expect Barcelona to lose that match if Valencia didn't lose a player to a red card, but how can you ensure Barcelona lose when Barcelona had 45+ in the second half and kept trying to score?

Barcelona were better in their own way today, they have clearly proven that Valencia deserved the defeat. Barcelona really dominated the match from the first half, they also recorded good statistics in the first half even though Valencia took advantage of most of their opportunities to end the match with a score of 1-2. In the end, Barcelona became more dominant in the second half due to the lack of 1 player in the Valencia squad due to a red card, this gave Barcelona more strength to build attacks and score 3 goals and win the match.

[tiCeR]

Barcelona tried hard to win this match, of course because Xavi's plan had the potential to fail due to the good performance shown by Valencia in defense and counter attacks. Barcelona have now equalized, but they are aiming to win by dominating attacks and possession of the ball. Valencia will only defend and counterattack when Barcelona loses the ball, but even that is very dangerous.

Barcelona still has a chance to win this match because they really tried through the many opportunities they created. It's true, currently Barcelona is having a hard time scoring a third goal because of Valencia's good defense, but I'm sure they will score soon.

Xavi Hernandez have always persuade his players to do their best because it's never easy watching them becoming the very best team against oppositions. Xavi Hernandez should encourage his players because they're having slim chances of winning games when it comes to average teams. Valencia was leading but due to the Red card given to their goal keeper before the end of first halve, that was the beginning of their weakness. Barcelona won their game against Valencia. It was a tough night at Camp Nou because the visitors came prepared and deliver an excellent job towards the hosts.

I disagree. Xavi is not the best coach ever. He is a pretty weak guy who got lucky that Barcelona is more or less part of his name. As a player, he was an amazing midfielder, but I never saw him as someone who is a good coach. I see how a lot of people are celebrating him, but please compare him to Gurdiola. No way would he ever be able to be mentioned in one breath with Guardiola. Xavi is the worst case, but sadly they need him.