Liverpool FC Forum

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I would rest Gerrard against Sheff Utd because he will have played in 3 games in 7 days (Haifa, 30 mins against Chelsea and Greece probably 45mins)and we will want him fresh for the return against Haifa. Xabi looked poor against Chelsea but he has only been back in training for 3 weeks and its very hard for his type of player to pick up the pace of a game when coming on as a sub.(admittedly his passing was way off.)  Against Haifa I didnt think he had a bad game, just not a good one. Its certainly going to be interesting watching Rafa's team selection this season, when even our best players are having to fight for their places.
           When I picked Sissoko as Rafa's best ever buy a few months ago not many agreed with me(to say the least )maybe a few more agree now ?

[aCe']

i agree with your post there ! Sissoko is great and gives the club a whole new dimension definsively !
I wouldnt want to drop him anytime soon... Gerrard is a great player and i wouldnt mind seeing him playing in that right midfield but..... now that pennant is in our squad, i think we should try to be consistent in our picking of the starting 11 .
This is how it stands if you ask me:
Sissoko starts every game when fit PERIOD.
Xabi is dropped whenever he is not fit or if his form isnt all that good.
Gerrard is played in CM when Xabi or Sissoko are missing, but starts in RW whenever both are fit and starting.
It would have been alot easier if we had sold Xabi to RealMadrid eh ?! not that i would like to see him leave or anything but it just looks like we have an extra player in that position now doesnt it !

[coddy]

What do we need? 

Two pacy wingers?  Check.

Solid defence?  Check.

Variety in attack?  Check.

Top class goalkeeper?  Check.

Strength in depth on the bench?  Check.

Answering your question though.  Drop Alonso? 

No way 'Jose'!!!!!!

Ah thats why we're going to win this season. It's all so obvious now. 

[laza]

The fact this topic has started really does show what an riches we have in the centre of ground
What a great headache for Rafa to have but cmon no player get dropped these days, he is being rested

[66-1112520797]

A good and valid post

So, for now, let's stop messing Gerrard around, and have him starting in the middle alongside Momo. Pennant and Gonzo (or Aurelio, who impressed me today) on the wings, and Alonso can start the season on the bench

I agree we shouldnt be messing Gerrard around, so there would be no point playing him in CM. Eventually he'll be moved back out wide. I agree with you that Alonso looks off the pace at the mo, but the time is going to come when all three are going to warrant a starting place. And then what Gerrard out wide ? Yes, I'd start off the campaign as  we ended the match with our midfield yesterday.

[NiftyNeil]

This is fantastic that we are arguing about dropping a world class midfielder. It shows how far we have come under Rafa, using such a limited budget.
Ivor's made a good point there though, Alonso is looking the weeker of the three at present. I've no complaints who plays, as long as we're winning.

[ulswater]

Whislt Alonso might not be as sharp as he can, it is very very early days, the Premier season hasnt started yet. All he needs is a few games to get some form back. It's no big deal and certanly not worth dropping him.

No offence meant to the original poster but it is a bit of a knee jerk reaction

[bigmick]

I think Ivor is spot on, word for word. What's more I think on saturday Rafa will agree with him,or perhaps start with Zenden and leave both Gerrard and Alonso on the bench. He will probably reason that if he can rack up some rest time for his big players now while still getting results, the dividends will come later in the season. All this is particularly true when you consider that the away leg against Haifa is probably going to be in our top three biggest games of the whole season. Well thought out post mate.

[66-1112520797]

I think Ivor is spot on, word for word. What's more I think on saturday Rafa will agree with him,or perhaps start with Zenden and leave both Gerrard and Alonso on the bench. He will probably reason that if he can rack up some rest time for his big players now while still getting results, the dividends will come later in the season. All this is particularly true when you consider that the away leg against Haifa is probably going to be in our top three biggest games of the whole season. Well thought out post mate.

Could you imagine the outcries if say we lost one-nil at Sheffield utd, playing Zenden from the start instead of Alonso or Gerrard.
The game coming up on saturday will be arguably harder than the Chelsea game of yesterday. As good as Zenden was, and lets not forget he's coming back from a long lay-off , I'd pick my strongest team. Last season we werent picking up the points early on. My guess is Rafa would certainly want to improve on that. So Gerrard on the right with Xabi and Momo in the middle is our strongest mid on paper, maybe not form. say after sixty minutes alls well and good then I'd think of bringing Zenden or Pennant on. I definately think there will be enough time during the season to rest anyone of those three and start with Zenden, but not at the very begining of the campaign where we need to be quick out of the blocks.

[Kopite-Jud]

hmm its a very tough desicion we could possibly play 3-5-2 i think we played this vs newcastle last year and it worked pretty well this would meen we could have gerrard alonso and sissoko in the middle and gonzalez an pennant down the wings with crouchie and bellamy or who ever upfront .
what everyone think about that ?

[Anfield rapper]

Sissoko had a great game yesterday and against Haifa so it is a fair point you make. Personally i would prefer to see us play 4-5-1 before dropping Alonso. We could start games 4-5-1 and then depending on how the game is going change to a 4-4-2. It is a nice problem for Rafa and just shows that the strength of our squad is up there with the best around now.

[stmichael]

If you remember, Xabi was carrying an ankle injury in the Cup Final and was a serious doubt all week. He should not have played.

He's just a bit leggy at the moment from doing the physical pre-season work he's missed out on. All in all, I'm not worried about him. I still expect us to beat Sheffield United if he doesn't play.

All in all, we are absolutely blessed in midfield at the moment. The number of "possibilities" as rafa would say, are endless. I also thought Zenden looked much better yesterday when he played central.

[Anfield rapper]

The only problem with this situation is that if Rafa does start with Sissoko instead of Alonso, Real are waiting in the wings to sign him. Hopefully he will be ok with whatever plans Rafa has for the team and it could work out to be a nice little rotation.

[ivor_the_injun]

If Alonso so much as thought about signing for Madrid on the back of being benched for one game, I'd seriously question where his head's at.

For that matter, if Rafa thought about that angle before benching him for one game, I'd question where his head's at as well. No player at the club has any divine right to be in the starting 11 at any point. We're so strong throughout the team that - for example - Alonso, Gerrard and Riise are all easily droppable. In today's market, that's probably £60m worth of talent.

We've got such great depth in the middle of midfield, it's a great problem for the manager to have, and there are many ways around it. All permutations have been mentioned in this thread so far, and it just goes to show how strong we are in the middle these days.

At the end of the day, over a long season we'll need all three of Sissoko, Gerrard and Alonso, and having the option of rotating them will keep them all fresh come season's end.

[stmichael]

Alonso in the last two years has had slow starts to the season. I expect nothing different this time around, but you can't ignore his ability. Even when he's not at the top of his game, he can make a difference.