redbeergoggles wrote:Ok here's the thing ,I don't rate Johnson as a competent enough defender, the space he affords opposing strikers is alarming in the extreme and I expect Liverpool to lose a great deal of important goals this coming season ,I talk of course of his awareness in a defensive capacity ,because while it is no secret he is a formidable offensive player in supporting Liverpool's attack ,it must be said he leaves a huge amount of space on the right side often more times than not leaving Carragher and co extremely vulnerable .
I eventually see Johnson deployed in the role Rafa dreamt Pennant would fill ,and Carragher moved to right back when Agger returns ,I am usually loathe to concur with the media ,but on this occasion they are sadly correct when they talk about Johnson's deficiencies in his defensive capabilities ,last nights match made this all the more apparent ,better sides than Debreceni will arrive at Anfield with the sole intention of exploiting this .
I know its early days but am I alone in noticing how Liverpool have suddenly become more susceptible on the right side of defence , don't get me wrong I think Johnson is a brilliant acquisition for the Reds and he has excited in his attacking forays ,but come on people as Liverpool fans we take great pride in ourselves on our football acumen,and Johnson is not a defender ,I hope he proves me wrong and if he does I will have the honesty to declare it on this forum .
As for Torres I think I would have to concur with Big Michael on this one ,he needed to be rested ,its obvious his mindset is not one of football at the moment ,and in games against quite clearly inferior opposition Rafa should afford him a much needed sabbatical ,on a lighter note though, I thought Kuyt was at his industrious best ,as was the much maligned Lucas who battled well in the midfield and didn't shirk one tackle throughout .
It was also encouraging to see Aurelio make an appearance however fleeting it was ,overall I would have to say it was not a performance in keeping with our European pedigree ,but it was another win and an invaluable three precious points
GYBS wrote:So people mentioning lucas was oridnary and loosing the ball yet to me it seemed last night it was our skipper who was loosing the ball in midfield and not lucas .
DrPepe wrote:Meh
When you're in a team used to winning it garners a strong mentality
Ola Mr Benitez wrote:I think Torres looks frustrated with the lack of service.
Did you see in the 2nd half when Kuyt had the ball and Torres was running down the right hand channel screaming for the ball.. Kuyt went the other way and Torres kicked out in absolute frustration..
Owzat wrote:DrPepe wrote:Meh
When you're in a team used to winning it garners a strong mentality
Watch out for Oxford United in the cup then..............
bunglemark2 wrote:The 3 points aside, there's pretty much nothing to write home about last night's performance...I reckon that must be one of the most inept performances against a Sunday league team EVER...
As one pundit said, those lads were there for the slaughter. They should've been annihilated by half-time.
And it's pretty worrting how "not bothered" both Torres and Gerrard looked last night. SG couldn't string two passes together, Torres completely off the boil....
It looks like something is preoccupying both of them at the moment.
bigmick wrote:redbeergoggles wrote:Ok here's the thing ,I don't rate Johnson as a competent enough defender, the space he affords opposing strikers is alarming in the extreme and I expect Liverpool to lose a great deal of important goals this coming season ,I talk of course of his awareness in a defensive capacity ,because while it is no secret he is a formidable offensive player in supporting Liverpool's attack ,it must be said he leaves a huge amount of space on the right side often more times than not leaving Carragher and co extremely vulnerable .
I eventually see Johnson deployed in the role Rafa dreamt Pennant would fill ,and Carragher moved to right back when Agger returns ,I am usually loathe to concur with the media ,but on this occasion they are sadly correct when they talk about Johnson's deficiencies in his defensive capabilities ,last nights match made this all the more apparent ,better sides than Debreceni will arrive at Anfield with the sole intention of exploiting this .
I know its early days but am I alone in noticing how Liverpool have suddenly become more susceptible on the right side of defence , don't get me wrong I think Johnson is a brilliant acquisition for the Reds and he has excited in his attacking forays ,but come on people as Liverpool fans we take great pride in ourselves on our football acumen,and Johnson is not a defender ,I hope he proves me wrong and if he does I will have the honesty to declare it on this forum .
As for Torres I think I would have to concur with Big Michael on this one ,he needed to be rested ,its obvious his mindset is not one of football at the moment ,and in games against quite clearly inferior opposition Rafa should afford him a much needed sabbatical ,on a lighter note though, I thought Kuyt was at his industrious best ,as was the much maligned Lucas who battled well in the midfield and didn't shirk one tackle throughout .
It was also encouraging to see Aurelio make an appearance however fleeting it was ,overall I would have to say it was not a performance in keeping with our European pedigree ,but it was another win and an invaluable three precious points
I don't think many would argue Red that Johnsons got some improving to do from a defensive viewpoint. equally, the idea of him playing right side of midfield is one which has come up before a couple of times.
That said though, despite having reservations about the manager I am very confident in his coaching ability, particularly from a defensive perspective. As such, I'm backing Rafa to help Johnson to iron out his deficiencies, although I do agree that at some point this season we are going to be left scratching our heads at his defending (which makes a change from our b0ll0cks at his attacking I suppose).
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