Liverpool FC Forum

by **115-1073096938** » Sun Dec 11, 2005 1:27 am

I have to say i can't wait to see the two of them in central midfield together on a regular basis. Finally they seem to be on the same wave length and they have the potential to compliment each other so well.

Alonso has become one of the best holding midfielders in the country. He's a deep lying playmaker and his ability to read the game ala Hamann style is improving every week. He's also becoming even better and stronger in the tackle. His level of competativeness is superb and generally he's got everything. He's fairly quick, skillfull, intelligent, strong, technically superb and in general top notch.

Gerrard roams everywhere and lacks Alonso's intelligence but he makes up for what he lacks tactically in the amount of ground he covers and desire he shows. I love the way when he's closing down any player you just know he's going to win the ball. World class.

On Sissoko, what a third choice. Good player, good alround game. Once he's learnt his trade, IE timing of tackles better positioning and a bit more care with his passes we'll see a really good footballer.

Is it just me, or has Xabi improved immensely since we first signed him?

by **neil** » Sun Dec 11, 2005 1:30 am

no, I think you have both improved.

by **Dalglish** » Sun Dec 11, 2005 1:30 am

[quote="stu_the_red"][/quote]
Hi Stu, in answer to your question there at the end

"Is it just me, or has Xabi improved immensely since we first signed him?"

the answers NO , you just wasn't looking hard enough

Like most your probably too busy drooling over Stevie G to mnotice the better passer, tackler and more inteligent midfielder that it Xabi Alonso

by **Sabre** » Sun Dec 11, 2005 1:34 am

According to my very appreciated Drummerphil 2 months ago, he wasn't the same lad of yesteryear, I hope he agrees now with what you say and what I think. Alonso is a slow start player every season, he needs a little more time than the others , he always needed slightly more time than the preseason to reach his best moment. But now he's class. I swear that I'm not blinded by colours when I say that he's getting better than the best Spanish midfielders of the last 30 years.

And he's improving, because he's young. From Real Sociedad times he has improved two things, tackling, and "guts" to shoot from long distance, which is something he lacked, since we did know he had a terrible long shot since he was a 16 year old player (we do follow more than you lot the reserves, we have no money).

Bottomline, he's improving his positioning and tackling, and the best of him, is yet to come, which is nice.

by **Woollyback** » Sun Dec 11, 2005 1:40 am

i think xabi had a slow(ish) start to the season and didn't look his imperious best but he is certainly getting even better as each game goes by. with him & stevie both on form and reading eachother's game properly then i'd say there's no doubt we have the best midfield in england at the moment

and to think ferguson could have signed him 3/4 years ago but said "no" :laugh:

by **kazza** » Sun Dec 11, 2005 8:07 am

I think they have both improved. I think we do have the best central midfield pairing Europe. As was said in Xabi we have a very intelligent player who reads the game well and who is a superb passer. In Gerrard we have an amazingly fit player who is able to cover every blade of grass, is an excellent passer and who wears the captains armband with such pride that he considers it his responsibility to do what it takes to win (even play right-back).

In the last two years Xabi has improved his physical game (a must in the premiership) and Gerrard has improved technically in his reading of the game (a must in Europe). In fact it would be a tougher call now on who the best passer on the team is (Xabi may shade it). With the attributes that both players bring to the field makes them second to none as a pair.

I have got to say that the improvement is due largely to Benitez (especially with the case of Gerrard). All Gerrard needed to be one of the best midfielders in the world was a little technical polish and that can and has been learned. You cannot learn to have a great engine or desire (a player either has it or not) and he always had that.

by **Scottbot** » Sun Dec 11, 2005 2:25 pm

I agree with those who say Xabi was slightly off his game (by his own high standards) early in the season but there is no doubt he has been running the show in many of our recent games. The pass he put in for Garcia's goal against Sunderland was (for me) the pass of the season. Can you believe that goal didn't even make the BBC goal of the month competition!!?
The main improvements i have seen in Xabi this season have been his tackling (he seems far more combative this season) and there have also been several times when one of our lads has made a last ditch tackle or block and i've mistakenly assumed it was Carra or Hamman only to see Xabi pick himself up off the ground. I wonder how good the lad can be after another couple of seasons in English football?

As for the Captain. I'm loving him playing out on the right just now. Sure there has been the odd game where he has struggled to get involved but with Momo doing so much good work in the middle of the park the team has the perfect balance right now. I also like the way Gerrard has been swapping to left wing (as he did yesterady with Kewell going to the right) for at least ten minutes of each game. I'm sure that is Rafa's input and is another way of keeping the opposition defence off balance.
To be honest, with the form he is in you could play Gerrard anywhere on the park (except maybe GK) and he would give you an International-class performance.

On another subject, how many crosses did we put into the Boro penalty box yesterday? I can't remember a Liverpool team getting in so many good balls. Finnan, Gerrard, Riise, Kewell and Garcia did a great job i respect.

Also i see we have been linked to Chris Riggott on more than a few occasions recently (and also going back a year). Despite the sending off it thought he did a good job at the back for them yeaterday.
Do the rest of you like the look of him?

by **RAFABENITEZ** » Sun Dec 11, 2005 2:28 pm

Woolyback, are those birds breathing in or is it just me? stomachs look a little, well 'concave'

by **Effes** » Sun Dec 11, 2005 2:32 pm

Who cares?

by **Scottbot** » Sun Dec 11, 2005 2:47 pm

RAFABENITEZ wrote:Woolyback, are those birds breathing in or is it just me? stomachs look a little, well 'concave'

It also looks like the heads might have been super-imposed onto the bodies!

by **stoney** » Sun Dec 11, 2005 2:54 pm

Scottbot wrote:
RAFABENITEZ wrote:Woolyback, are those birds breathing in or is it just me? stomachs look a little, well 'concave'

It also looks like the heads might have been super-imposed onto the bodies!

It also looks like they're ladyboys :wwww

by **redmikey** » Sun Dec 11, 2005 3:17 pm

I honestly believe that gerra is enjoying his football now more than any other time apart from when he first broke into the team, this is simply because we are starting to put quality players of xabi, sissoko maybe gonzarles (the best rafa has seen) and the team is going fowards with evry game he must be laughin at the manure player at england games

by **skipper** » Sun Dec 11, 2005 3:49 pm

Players like Xabi, Crouch, and Reina have really stepped it up. When the team around you play well, you tend to play well too. As long as everyone on the team is on the same page and play well, then the entire team is inspired and that's how you win 7 consecutive premiership matches and have 10 straight clean sheets.

by **GunGod** » Sun Dec 11, 2005 3:58 pm

Woollyback wrote:and to think ferguson could have signed him 3/4 years ago but said "no"

honestly, i think he would still say no even now (if he got to fork out 10m). i dont really understand all the hype thats been given to alonso. he's a decent player, no doubt. but certainly not what one can claim outrightly as "one of the best midfield holding players". I dont really know how one defines "holding midfield player" but certainly its seems that alonso doesn't do much more than what carrick is doing at spurs? or less than what makelele is doing at the ski? if you talk about it on a worldwide basis, then alonso does not even make the top 30 perhaps, and that's already a compliment on my part.

i think i might not understand football that well. i say that without the scarcasm. i really mean it, cos i really dont see the magic behind alonso that alleviates him to a superstar status. i dont see what he has been doing in the matches to give him such status and he was pretty annoynomous yesterday too, yet people are saying he had a perfect game and stuff like that. he's decent, but not yet great.

by **Sabre** » Sun Dec 11, 2005 4:02 pm

"holding midfield player" but certainly its seems that alonso doesn't do much more than what carrick is doing at spurs?

hahahahahahahahahahahahahah

What a joke. Do you go to Anfield lad? or just watch the highlights.

With all due respect, of course.

To be fair, you might have a point. I think that football is massively popular, it's not a sport that cares only people watching at the stadiums, but many people. It's not surprising Ronaldinho gets all the awards, because he makes dribblings, fakes, bicycles, looks to the other side when passing to another, that nice thingies that are nice to watch in TV.

And that's why Gerrard doesn't get it, because people just don't appreciate any more a guy who takes the corners well, in every fashion of corner you could imagine, because he passes the ball efficiently but with no loxuries, and same applies for Alonso. Nowadays it's not seen a side to side pass, that makes moving all the defence (and runnning, and getting tired), because that doesn't appear in the highlights.

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