Liverpool FC Forum

[Number 9]

If we want our strongest eleven we may have to upset our captain.I think that Alonso Mascherano and Gerrard all bring qualities that cannot be ignored and all are too good to be left on the bench.
I also think we play better in a 4-4-2 as opposed to 4-5-1 and for me that only leaves one option.Gerrard on the right!

                        Reina 
   Finnan  Carra          Agger     Aurelio

  Gerrard      Masherano  Alonso  Babel

             Crouch      Torres



The reason i would select Babel before Kewell is because i feel he is more of a goal threat,likewise Crouch instead of Voronin or Kuyt as although the big man aint fantastic he is more of a goal threat than the two of them together proven(IF given a run of games)

To me the most important thing especially at present is having more players on the park that can and will score rather than say playing Kewell as he is a better crosser than Babel for example.
We need goal threats from all over the park from now to the end of season becaue we have been dominating way two many games but failing to put the ball in the net.

[Mark 23]

If we want our strongest eleven we may have to upset our captain.I think that Alonso Mascherano and Gerrard all bring qualities that cannot be ignored and all are too good to be left on the bench.
I also think we play better in a 4-4-2 as opposed to 4-5-1 and for me that only leaves one option.Gerrard on the right!

                        Reina 
   Finnan  Carra          Agger     Aurelio

  Gerrard      Masherano  Alonso  Babel

             Crouch      Torres



The reason i would select Babel before Kewell is because i feel he is more of a goal threat,likewise Crouch instead of Voronin or Kuyt as although the big man aint fantastic he is more of a goal threat than the two of them together proven(IF given a run of games)

To me the most important thing especially at present is having more players on the park that can and will score rather than say playing Kewell as he is a better crosser than Babel for example.
We need goal threats from all over the park from now to the end of season becaue we have been dominating way two many games but failing to put the ball in the net.

Very good post

[ConnO'var]

hmmm.         
                   Reina

Finnan    Carra     Agger  Arbeloa

Pennant  Gerrard  Masch  Kewell

             Torres   Babel

[Mark 23]

hmmm.         
                   Reina

Finnan    Carra     Agger  Arbeloa

Pennant  Gerrard  Masch  Kewell

             Torres   Babel

In what context?

[Seano Kop]

Reina

Arbelo                        Carra      Agger                        Riise

Pennant                     Gerrard  Mash                        Kewell

                                 Torres  Kuyt

[laza]

Reina

Finnan      Carra     Agger    Arbeloa

Gerrard      Mascherano  Alonso    Kewell

                 Kuyt    Torres

[ConnO'var]

hmmm.         
                   Reina

Finnan    Carra     Agger  Arbeloa

Pennant  Gerrard  Masch  Kewell

             Torres   Babel

In what context?

In the context of the original post by woof.

[66-1112520797]

Ahhh, the semi-regular 'name your best 11' thread which always seems to demonstrate that, while most of us can name a core of nailed-on starters, we rarely see a strong consensus for a complete best 11.  Which, of course, makes the persistent "FFS Rafa, just cut out this rotation lark and play your best 11" shout from some quarters (not you, Big Mick, I know...  ) ring a little hollow.

Ah dont know about that Bob, the selections people have put up arent that radical from one anothers, its mainly Gerrard on the right as you've put in your team (but at the same time said Gerrards best position is NOW center ) to accomodate Alonso.

Even so, many people on here wont agree what our best eleven is, but the majority see that its not playing Crouch out wide on the left, or Gerrard on the left and Voronin and Kuyt upfront together. So the "ringing hollow thing" is a useless dig really Bob.

[woof woof !]

Jeezuz lads, it's just a bit of fun , we all have what we consider our best 11, was just wondering if we fielded an 11 by popular vote which 11 would we end up with. No need to justify your choice or supply subs . Just give us your best 11 regardless of the opposition.

[Mark 23]

Jeezuz lads, it's just a bit of fun , we all have what we consider our best 11, was just wondering if we fielded an 11 by popular vote which 11 would we end up with. No need to justify your choice or supply subs . Just give us your best 11 regardless of the opposition.

We could fall out here

[woof woof !]

Jeezuz lads, it's just a bit of fun , we all have what we consider our best 11, was just wondering if we fielded an 11 by popular vote which 11 would we end up with. No need to justify your choice or supply subs . Just give us your best 11 regardless of the opposition.

We could fall out here

More than happy with that prospect 

[Bad Bob]

Ahhh, the semi-regular 'name your best 11' thread which always seems to demonstrate that, while most of us can name a core of nailed-on starters, we rarely see a strong consensus for a complete best 11.  Which, of course, makes the persistent "FFS Rafa, just cut out this rotation lark and play your best 11" shout from some quarters (not you, Big Mick, I know...  ) ring a little hollow.

Ah dont know about that Bob, the selections people have put up arent that radical from one anothers, its mainly Gerrard on the right as you've put in your team (but at the same time said Gerrards best position is NOW center ) to accomodate Alonso.

Even so, many people on here wont agree what our best eleven is, but the majority see that its not playing Crouch out wide on the left, or Gerrard on the left and Voronin and Kuyt upfront together. So the "ringing hollow thing" is a useless dig really Bob.

Useless dig?

Well, let's have a look at the areas of the pitch where there hasn't been complete consensus so far:

RB - many prefer Finnan but some prefer Arbeloa
LB - a close run thing between Arbeloa and Aurelio
RM - again, a close run thing between Gerrard and Pennant
2nd St - Crouch and Babel share most of the votes but a not insignificant few have put Kuyt down

So, even if we all agree on the rest of the team (keeper, CBs, CMs, top striker) that still leaves four positions that we have no strong consensus on.  Now, if you have a look at the number of changes Rafa averages per game you'll see that it's somewhere around 3-4 per game.  So, I say again, the "play your best 11, Rafa" shout rings a bit hollow given that--at least when it comes to the fullbacks, RM and second striker--people have different ideas of what exactly that best 11 might be.

[woof woof !]

people have different ideas of what exactly that best 11 might be.

Hence my "wondering what the team would look like if we fielded one by popular vote. FFS it's not a p'issing contest.

[Bad Bob]

people have different ideas of what exactly that best 11 might be.

Hence my "wondering what the team would look like if we fielded one by popular vote. FFS it's not a p'issing contest.

Not to worry, Woof--I think it's a useful thing to discuss every so often and now's as good a time as any.  And, I agree that it would be interesting to see what team we would collectively put out at the moment (if injuries were not a factor, of course).

I'm just pointing out to anyone who trots out the "play your best 11, Rafa!" shout (a few do it on here and if the hat fits, wear it) that these threads always demonstrate that it's never that simple.  Why?  Because, while we have undisputed class players that we all would select in certain positions, we have other players who probably aren't quite up to standard and, consequently, aren't everyone's cup of tea.  Conversely, we also have a couple of positions where we have good to great players of largely equal quality, making choosing between them difficult. 

So, "play your best 11" is, IMHO, a bit of a nonsense criticism.  Now, before I get blasted, let me say that that does not mean you have to accept rotation.  As Big Mick has been saying for some time, you can still urge Rafa to pick a settled side and stick with it until injuries, suspensions or significant loss of form necessitate a change.  That means giving Arbeloa, say, an extended run at LB or Pennant a few games on the bounce at RM and seeing how things shake out.  That's an argument I can live with because it doesn't hinge on some mythical Best 11 that everyone except Rafa can apparently see.

[OneHotRed]

Pepe
Arbeloa    Carra    Agger    Riise 

Pennant  Gerrard   Masch   Kewell

            Babel     Torres