Liverpool FC Forum

by **Kerry07** » Tue Feb 14, 2012 4:42 pm

devaney wrote:Kerry - Given the performances of Spearing Downing and Henderson. I would have gone 4 4 2 and played Bellamy Maxi and Carroll which is what I said before the game. Carroll and Bellamy have been very useful recently but they have to start games to be effective. I'd play my old Granny before Downing and that's were Maxi comes into the equation. I know he hasn't been great this season.

The midfield is clearly a major problem.I'm afraid Downing is right at the top of my list for shipping out. If we got £10m we would be doing well. Just how many midfield c.ock ups are we going to make. We sell Alonso and fail to secure his chosen replacement. Cole on a free and largely ineffective. Aquilani £20m and for reasons best known to Rafa and Hodgson it didn't work out. Poulsen was simply not capable of playing in the Premiership let alone LFC. Mereiles was useful so we sell him. Maxi was doing ok so we ignore him! Rierra started really well and then things started to go down hill - why? Henderson in my opinion is not good enough at this level and I'm not sure he ever will be.Spearing is of the same ilk. Adam is ok but nothing outstanding. Jovanovic was very disappointing. Mascherano we couldn't keep him due to inept owners and management! Zenden,Pennant and Benayoun all left more than just a bit to be desired! SORRY BUT THAT MAKES AWFUL READING. To think some people call us a work in progress. Souness Barnes Whelan Heighway Hall Lee to name but a few were the players that could make a difference. I hate to say it but I now think we have a midfield that is possibly the worst it has ever been.

We play counter attack at OT.. swift breakaways... completely the opposite to Carroll. Also.. 4-4-2 means we get outnumbered in midfield.

---------------Suarez
-------Bellamy----------Maxi
---------------Gerrard

That is our best front four, and that four can indeed compete. However the problem is who is going to provide them the ball?. Who provides the platform from central midfield...any two from Adam, Henderson, Spearing... are no match for top sides. We have not even come close to replacing Alonso. Central midfield gets more touches of the ball than any other position.. hence its the most important position. Unless u have a central midfield that can compete then it doesnt matter who u have upfront.. they wont be seeing the ball.. and in the few times they do the service to them will be substandard.

by **stmichael** » Tue Feb 14, 2012 4:49 pm

Kerry07 wrote:We have not even come close to replacing Alonso.

to be fair, there aren't many players who can replace alonso in terms of what he brings to a team, especially when we're not in the champions league.

we miss lucas so badly it's unreal. we can even get awy with playing a two in some games when he's fit because his reading of the game and positioning is so good. him and adam were starting to form a decent partnership until lucas got injured.

ironically you could say the same about the mancs. they haven't replaced scholes to the extent that they've brought him back and him and giggs are still head and shoulders above anything they've got in central midfield. the diffence is they've always got outlets in wide areas who can go past players which we don't.

by **woof woof !** » Tue Feb 14, 2012 5:29 pm

Kerry07 wrote:Central midfield gets more touches of the ball than any other position.. hence its the most important position. Unless u have a central midfield that can compete then it doesnt matter who u have upfront.. they wont be seeing the ball.. and in the few times they do the service to them will be substandard.

Don't think we should blame it all on those supplying the service. Watching the game again couldn't believe how often when in the final third our "front" players had become static, so much so that players on the ball were forced to pass it sideways or back through lack of options.

When it comes to counter attacking we're just not at it, as I've said before we're so often just ponderous and predictable, direct up until the final third then it's played back or sideways as we seek to unlock a defence that's had all the time in the world to organize, finally out of ideas the ball goes all the way back to Reina who hoofs it forward to be collected by an oppo player and we start all over again.

The days of "pass and move the liverpool groove" are a distant memory.

by **supersub** » Tue Feb 14, 2012 5:38 pm

woof woof ! wrote:The days of "pass and move the liverpool groove" are a distant memory.

Isn't it just !

by **Thommo's perm** » Tue Feb 14, 2012 7:47 pm

Kerry07 wrote:
Thommo's perm wrote:Absolutely. My heart sank when I saw the team, and not just because of the handshake. KK MUST learn sooner rather than later who he can rely on and who he cant.
But as I say, they were there for the taking

there for the taking? We were a 4 to 1 shot.

And why did your heart sink? Is it because u thought thats the best we've got?

Who else could we have chosen that would have made us better? Midfield especially. There isn't anyone. When i saw the teamsheet i thought thats not far off our most talented XI (bar Lucas for Spearing, Maxi for Kuyt). We lost to a team that has better players than us.

Glad to see youre back to your bitchy best
:;):

Firstly I dont give a fu'ck about the odds. Any team which has Giggs, Scholes, Carrick and Ferdinand in is always there for the taking. Add on to the the new dodgy keeper and we should really have won
Secondly my heart sank becase Suarez isnt match fit, Adam is better than Spearing, Henderson is gash, Downing shouldnt be allowed anywhere near a game which requires having testicles, and Bellamy and Carroll should have been first choice due to form. I could go on...
And lastly see the above answers regarding making us better. If you believe that the mancs have a better team than us you are more of a fool than you seem. They had five minutes were they scored two goals and then virtually clung on for the victory. They were lucky that KK fu'cked up. Stop building them up into something theyre not. Youre worse than the co'cksucking media
:talktothehand

by **The_Rock** » Wed Feb 15, 2012 1:02 pm

This is the strongest team we can put on now....

Reina
Johnson Skertel Agger Enrique
Spearing
Gerrard Adam
Suraez Carroll Bellamy

The front five are all capable of scoring goals. And this is what is missing from our game at the moment...goals.

And this is substitutes we have to go with (mix of experience and youth).
Maxi
Kuyt
Henderdon
Kelly
Shelvey
Coates
GK

No downing whatsoever...sell him to tottenham on the cheap once barcelona buys bale.

by **Basil** » Wed Feb 15, 2012 1:15 pm

And right in the middle of your "strongest" lineup is Spearing, it just shows the lack of balance in our squad.

by **Igor Zidane** » Wed Feb 15, 2012 2:02 pm

Spearing made a mistake , i'd rather him holding than adam or gerrard or henderson . Granted he's know lucas but he's getting there and he's all we have for that role . stick with him and he's be fine . We have to decide between adam and henderson for the other midfielder next to gerrard and i reckon i would go with henderson . Adam is so slow and needs far to much time to be effective . He's a gifted player no doubt but far to slow for the way kenny wants to play . Henderson however although still very young and learning has it all , he will be brilliant in a couple of years . He has an engine and can see a pass , he loves getting forward and tracks back . He's everywhere and when he learns to tackle better and have a bit more composure on the ball he'll be a star . i really thingk he's be the next big thing for us .

by **stmichael** » Wed Feb 15, 2012 2:54 pm

Basil wrote:And right in the middle of your "strongest" lineup is Spearing, it just shows the lack of balance in our squad.

and yet at the start of the season people were whinging that we had too many central midfielders.

by **jacdaniel** » Wed Feb 15, 2012 3:15 pm

stmichael wrote:
Basil wrote:And right in the middle of your "strongest" lineup is Spearing, it just shows the lack of balance in our squad.

and yet at the start of the season people were whinging that we had too many central midfielders.

To be fair though, at one point we did have far too many CM's. But most people agreed that it would be a big mistake to get rid of both Mereiles and Aquilani while Gerrard still wasn't fit. And thats proven to be the case IMO.

We should have kept one of them 2 or else looked into signing someone else.

by **mart** » Wed Feb 15, 2012 3:20 pm

stmichael wrote:
Basil wrote:And right in the middle of your "strongest" lineup is Spearing, it just shows the lack of balance in our squad.

and yet at the start of the season people were whinging that we had too many central midfielders.

We did, but we got rid of some of them. We still have plenty of central midfielders but there is no balance in terms of what type of skills they bring to the team. Lucas is our only real defensive midfielder, spearing just isnt good enough as a replacement.

by **maypaxvobiscum** » Wed Feb 15, 2012 3:28 pm

stmichael wrote:
Basil wrote:And right in the middle of your "strongest" lineup is Spearing, it just shows the lack of balance in our squad.

and yet at the start of the season people were whinging that we had too many central midfielders.

well the Henderson purchase was begs questions surely? it simply prevents the progress of players like Shelvey, who makes a bigger impact compared to how Henderson has fared. add to the fact that we paid so much for him, and that we lost Meireles, of course there will be many unhappy. for the amount which was dished out on players such as Henderson and Downing, results have been very very disappointing.

some might say Henderson is one for the future, but if that was the case, we should have kept the faith with Sebastian Leto as he showed more promise than Downing :wwww

by **7_Kewell** » Wed Feb 15, 2012 9:17 pm

we should NEVER have sold Meireles...DM or AM...he was twice the player Adam and Spearing are.

shocking peice of business in a summer of shocking Liverpool transfers

by **Greavesie** » Wed Feb 15, 2012 9:31 pm

jacdaniel wrote:
stmichael wrote:
Basil wrote:And right in the middle of your "strongest" lineup is Spearing, it just shows the lack of balance in our squad.

and yet at the start of the season people were whinging that we had too many central midfielders.

To be fair though, at one point we did have far too many CM's. But most people agreed that it would be a big mistake to get rid of both Mereiles and Aquilani while Gerrard still wasn't fit. And thats proven to be the case IMO.

We should have kept one of them 2 or else looked into signing someone else.

how?

Meireles and Aqau aren't what we need imo. We need a Masch type to break up play and protect the back 4, that's not Aqua and Meireles bottled every 50 50 that came his way

by **Benny The Noon** » Wed Feb 15, 2012 9:42 pm

7_Kewell wrote:we should NEVER have sold Meireles...DM or AM...he was twice the player Adam and Spearing are.

shocking peice of business in a summer of shocking Liverpool transfers

Yet Merieles spent the majority of last season being quiet on the pitch , he also then put in a transfer request to leave for one of our rivals.

If a player doesn't want to play for Liverpool then he can leave.

The picture people paint of Merieles is a lot different to what we witnessed on the pitch and why he still spends a number of games in the bench for Chelsea .

He had a good Jan feb for us but spent the rest the time in hiding.

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