Liverpool FC Forum

[darwisigila]

mori got few good chances to score against man city, especialy the through ball from hamman and gerrard freekick but...We must trust rafa and stick with him although some of his decision is hard to accept by fan. Apart from goal-shy strikers, i think the way we play in final third also contribute to our scoring problems. Its seem to that our player lacks ideas on how to pass the final ball or to move inside penalty area. On couple occasion, riise, kewell or finnan running with the ball to man city penalty area on both side ( right and left )when they beat man city fullback..in all that occasion our players will cross it high into penalty area or shoot across the goal mouth hoping mori, crouch will get it. why don't they pull back the ball for in coming team mates like manure or gooners always do? One of the reason i can think is our player are not aware of their surrounding or lacks composure. We should have won by a larger margin last sunday if we more creative and patient in our build up play...
Yes.... our midfield dominated every game now but the way we pass ball around must improved. I like to see our team make more forward passes and not to sideway. If we can do that, we are going to beat anyone...my point is we are still work in progress and lot had to be done before we can be fearsome team. right now i dont mind we won by 1 nil coz its still 3 point.

[anfieldadorer]

as for cisse, he virtually hasn't had enough chances to play in his genuine position, it would be ironic if he's to leave before he's given the chances

[puroresu]

Cisse's confidence must be pretty low.  Hearing the manager come out and publically back others but not him must get him down.

The French League isnt as strong as the Prem but it isnt a cake walk either.  You cant go from what he was like at Axuerre to a footballer.  The injury has had an effect considering Cisse has never played a full season in England yet. Lack of games has really effected his game and his not like a light switch which can just turn it 'on and off' when u please.

[stmichael]

With regards to all this talk about Morientes and Rafa's supposed stubborness to see him succeed, they've both gotten away with it in a sense because the results are still coming thick and fast as far as I'm concerned. The team is getting results and even if it's not always pretty, we're still grinding out the wins, in spite of Morientes' none existent goal return. Meanwhile, we as fans are suffering the fate of watching a player who is clearly not adapting (or past it), all because the results are working in our favour.

It makes me wonder how much time he would have been given if we weren't getting the results and the spotlight (if possible) was even more intense on him.

Yes we're stuck with what we've got until the end of the season, but if one striker's not doing it, you look to your other players to come in and put the pressure on those who are misfiring.

Cisse, I can only assume, mustn't be showing enough in training, but even still, in the back of my mind I don't quite buy that as an excuse. McManaman was said to be one of the worst trainers the club's ever had, but it didnt matter at the end of the day because he'd step on the pitch most weeks and do it for us.

I'm disillusioned more than anything about this situation, and it's the one trait that leaves a bitter taste about Rafa. The constant persistence with a player who's underachieving, while contradicting himself in his attitude towards Cisse.

I'd think more of Rafa's stance over Morientes if he just came out and said "Cisse isn't in my plans for the future", but we know that would be suicide I guess with regards to getting a decent transfer fee.

[Redrider]

[Exactly,
One of the points I was making. All of the forwards are playing too deep. They are arriving in the box, too late when the defenders are already in postion. Yesterday's goal was a classic exception.

This is a strange one and I sort of disagree with you twice in one sentence if that is possible. Sorry about the technical nature of this debate but here goes.

Appreciate your technical argument, but when all is said and done, how many players are truely perfect.
The art of Shankly and Paisley was to bring the best out of imperfection and create a team that was well stronger than the sum of the parts.
It is here that we are failing, the current sub-plot is that Rafa is trying to cope with 3/4 contrasting types of player for his strike team. The differences between the players is such that there is very little of mutual overlap to create a single good partnership out of the three options available to him.
This is compounded by a pattern of play and support where the forwards are expected to track back and 'do their bit' closing the opposition down, thus they are often caught in a deep position. There is also an over reliance on maintaining possession, to the extent that there are too many sideways balls and back passes which delays the incisive pass.
Thus we have both the maddening and contradictory effects of Forwards either arriving early or too late, both events result in a crowded box and limited opportunities for goal scoring.
Anyway to come back to the topic!
Yes 'Wake up Rafa' the lack of goals is probably not the fault of the players, more reflective of minor faults with the tactics and the team orders and more likely the responsibility of mid-field to provide a more speedy incisive service. Look at Sunday, see what happens when the incisive, quick ball gets through a goal follows.
Morientes does not need or deserve all the criticism that is available on these pages.

[Sabre]

There is also an over reliance on maintaining possession, to the extent that there are too many sideways balls and back passes which delays the incisive pass.

I disagree, perhaps it's my spanish view, but I'd rather wait sometimes to make the incissive pass , we try to make it too soon, no matter if we're winning or losing, although the anxiety is better seen when we're losing.

[Redrider]

The Ian Rush view:

Writing for the Echo, Rush said:

"Naturally the strikers are getting most criticism for the goal return, although I think much of it is unfair.

"You can only play to your strengths, and it's clear neither Fernando Morientes, nor Peter Crouch, are prolific goalscorers.

"They possess other qualities which can bring something to the team, so those who point the finger at their scoring record are missing the point. You can't make a player something he isn't, no matter how good a coach you are.

"What Benitez lacks with his forward options is variety. He needs a world class striker before the start of next season. Unfortunately, they're not always easy to find, particularly at the right price.

[neil]

be anothor sod's turn. Morientes will do !!

yeah he's , lets torch the feckin w4nker. I'm with 'Redrider'.

[woof woof !]

The Ian Rush view:

 

Writing for the Echo, Rush said:



"You can only play to your strengths, and it's clear neither Fernando Morientes, nor Peter Crouch, are prolific goalscorers".

I think we all agree with Rushie on this one .

      .

[Redrider]

The Ian Rush view:

Writing for the Echo, Rush said:

"Naturally the strikers are getting most criticism for the goal return, although I think much of it is unfair.

Fernando Morientes and Peter Crouch

"They possess other qualities which can bring something to the team, so those who point the finger at their scoring record are missing the point. You can't make a player something he isn't, no matter how good a coach you are.

"What Benitez lacks with his forward options is variety. He needs a world class striker before the start of next season. Unfortunately, they're not always easy to find, particularly at the right price.

I prefer the edited bit's, particularly the first sentence !!

[JBG]

Best even Premiership points tally at this point in the season?

European Champions and in the last 16 again?

QF of FA Cup?

[the_red_alonso]

Not going into the technical details or blaming the tactics it is clear & everybody knows it that our strikers are not scoring,they r not up to it.
How much Crouch gives to the team i don care,keep Moro playin-he ain't gonna score.....
Even a schoolboy can tell LIVERPOOL LACK GOALSCORING STRIKERS
Whatever the system or tactics of the team I just want to see Torres,Yakubu & Bent in the RED shirt next season.........perhaps that was too much of an asking..lol

[The_Rock]

I know its from kop-talk but here goes...... THE REASON WHY CISSE IS NOT PLAYING IS BECOS HOULLIER OVERPAYED FOR HIM..... (just my guess )

http://www.koptalk.com/detail_subtitle_listing.php?link_id=1211


Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez is having pressure applied on him not to play Djibril Cisse because of financial implications, claims a football writer in France.


There's no advertising in the KopTalk Gold Club!
Speaking on France Bleu this week, Jean-Jacques Florent suggested that Djibril Cisse wasn't figuring at Anfield because if he exceeds a set number of appearances, a payment clause relating to his transfer from Auxerre would be triggered.

Florent said: "It is not good how Liverpool are destroying this man. It is money, that is the cause and Auxerre do not want to be ignored.

"His coach maybe does not like what he can do or feels he can not play him because of certain conditions.

"Cisse will leave Liverpool at the end of the championship (season)."

We don't know much about Florent but from a quick look around the net, it would appear that he is connected to Auxerre in some capacity.

Cisse isn't everyone's cup of tea but in fairness, unlike Morientes, he hasn't had much of a chance of late to impress. We haven't hidden our feelings about this.

However, to make such a bold claim just doesn't ring true. Cisse isn't playing, we hope, purely because of tactical reasons and nothing more. Even we can accept that. So too it would seem does Djibril who remains upbeat about the future even though he's started earning the nickname of the Judge because he spends so much time on the bench.

[TheoRacle]

French journos are as bad as English ones then it appears... what a load of bollox! Does this guy really think that if Rafa thought Cisse could do the business on the pitch he still wouldn't play him to save a few pennies? 

The problem is neither Crouch, Mori or Cisse are banging in the goals at the moment... Rafa has to pick the player he feels is most likely to regain form while still contributing tooverall team play and stick with him.  Hence Morientes is getting the starts at the moment.

[puroresu]

All I know is 3 years ago Cisse was regarded as one of Europes hottest young strikers.  Somehow we have managed to shatter this young talents confidence and made him un-recognisable to the player he was at Axuerre.