Liverpool FC Forum

Of course Coutinho would have made a difference, I'm talking about the Liverpool version not the Barcelona Coutinho. The lack of a Coutinho type player probably cost us the title. Just look at United away, they had 2 kids playing in the centre of their midfield and 2 other players hobbling around the pitch clutching their hamstrings yet they somehow escaped with a draw.
IMO we match up to City pretty well apart from AM, they have ridiculous depth in that position (De Bruyne, D. Silva, B. Silva, Mahrez). That was where the title was won and lost imo.

Coutinho wS garbage in two legs versus us yakka. We did the right thing to sell him, at the right price. He's just a good right foot, we have more than compensated for his departure with Keita and Fabinho. Plus we have the Ox. Had ox been fit this season, I feel we would have done it.

Will you stop going on about f*cking Coutinho- we improved massively since he left

I agree with woof, Coutinho would have made a difference only to weaken us defensively.

As Carragher said we lost it by not taking enough points off City. We went the whole second part of the season waiting for someone to take points off City when we could not do it ourselves. Had we forced a draw against City we would be champions and had we beaten them at Anfield we would be champions. We were fantastic and they were one point better, as hard as it is to take. We were practically perfect and it is a bitter pill to take but we have a young vibrant team that will bounce back.

Read that City will spend 200 million this summer 

If this is the benchmark then we have to strengthen really well. Add few additions to our main xi and for the rest of the squad aswel. I think points tally will be in the 90's again next season.

We need quality cover for Mane/Salah. Someone who can rotate with them or push them. A natural finisher would be ideal however not sure how he would fit in our system.

I know we have Ox back but i would love to have someone like Hazard,KDB in the middle. A world class, creative game changer.

If we want the title we need to raise the bar and take things up a few notches.

kazza » Tue May 14, 2019 7:14 am wrote:I agree with woof, Coutinho would have made a difference only to weaken us defensively.

As Carragher said we lost it by not taking enough points off City. We went the whole second part of the season waiting for someone to take points off City when we could not do it ourselves. Had we forced a draw against City we would be champions and had we beaten them at Anfield we would be champions. We were fantastic and they were one point better, as hard as it is to take. We were practically perfect and it is a bitter pill to take but we have a young vibrant team that will bounce back.

Read that City will spend 200 million this summer 

If Coutinho would have weakened us defensively then that's a problem with our DM's, City play with 3 forwards and 2 AM's yet still have a great defence. Your saying we can't even play with one AM?
I'm looking forward to Grujic returning to the club in the summer, he's been getting rave reviews playing as a DM in Germany (he's even been compared to Steffen Effenberg) and I'd like to see him partnered up with Fabinho in the middle of the park, 2 big lads like that screening our defence might give us a solid enough platform to be able to add an extra attacker.
Out of a team of XI we only have 3 out and out offensive players, City have got a better balance imo.

Btw I read somewhere that City are planning on spending big this summer mainly because Pep thinks his team is too small for the prem. You could have fooled me given their points tally over the last 2 seasons but apparently Pep thinks they have too many small players (Sterling, Silva, Aguero, Sane, Foden etc etc) which he thinks gives the ale house sides in the division a foothold in games.

Coutinho doesn’t have the same work rate or defensive awareness as David Silva, Bernardo Silva, and De Bruyne. There is a reason why Klopp mainly played him on the left, why he mainly plays on the right for Brazil, and why he only lasted a couple of months in the middle at Barcelona before they moved him out to the left and he’s stayed there ever since. If Klopp had £100mil to spend on an AM Coutinho wouldn’t be on the shortlist. A different option to Mane on the left sure, but not as an AM. It’s the same reason Klopp doesn’t play Shaqiri in the middle – we hand over a degree of control to the opposition. I’m sure we’ll be back in for Fekir – he’s pressing stats are comparable to Firmino.

Eagle beat me to it Yakka, I’m not saying we can’t fit an AM, I just don’t  think that Coutinho’s work rate fits a Klopp side and that he is the answer.