Liverpool FC Forum

The point is there is no need to start panicking just right now - this stage last year we didn’t have Alisson or Shaqiri in the squad and only had Keita who was bought the year before plus Fabinho

Simply people need to calm down - our squad was good enough to be pipped by a point and win the CL , you can keep slagging off the midfield but that’s a midfield that destroyed Barce and went last season losing one game in the league - maybe if you took your blinkers off you might see that our midfield is nowhere near as bad as people keep suggesting.

The manager has got it right every transfer window - why do you think it’s now time to start doubting him and panicking

Nobody's panicking. I'm just saying we are just a little bit short in terms of squad quality to pip City to the title.

We got 97 points yes, but we scraped a lot of results last season by the odd goal, we weren't spanking teams 4/5 nil.

There's always room for improvement.

Red Rum » Sun Jul 07, 2019 5:48 pm wrote:Nobody's panicking. I'm just saying we are just a little bit short in terms of squad quality to pip City to the title.

We got 97 points yes, but we scraped a lot of results last season by the odd goal, we weren't spanking teams 4/5 nil.

There's always room for improvement.

Where you not demanding to know where our signings are after City signed Rodri ?

Red Rum » Thu Jul 04, 2019 7:22 pm wrote:City have signed Rodri for £62.5m.

where is our signings???? we NEED at least TWO IMO.  Anyone one who thinks that we don't need any signings at all is deluded, we are behind City in terms of midfield quality, creativity and depth/cover.

The OX is back great, but ALL of Wjnaldum, Fabinho, Keita, Milner, Henderson etc are way too defensive and not enough creativity. Lallana is spent, that just leaves the OX. This is the reason we drew too many games last season.
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We looked flat in midfield many times last season and Klopp needs to address this.

Red Rum » Sun Jul 07, 2019 4:48 pm wrote:Nobody's panicking. I'm just saying we are just a little bit short in terms of squad quality to pip City to the title.

We got 97 points yes, but we scraped a lot of results last season by the odd goal, we weren't spanking teams 4/5 nil.

There's always room for improvement.

That's actually a good point, a lot of our wins last season were eked out, plenty of teams had us on the back foot, City on the other hand always seemed to be all over whoever they were playing, whenever they dropped points it tended to be a combination of Sterling missing a host of sitters and the oppo scoring against the run of play.
A lot of the games where we dropped points though, like say City at home, United away or even Everton away we didn't look like scoring.
We are not the finished article and I hope the club don't think we are.

Seriously guys - we won the games , we had all manner of wins - smashed some , won close games , sneaked a last minute winners

No team is “the finished article” - it’s amazing how many run down our team and the achievements last season as if it allows them to back up their opinion.

Lallana in Pyjamas » Sun Jul 07, 2019 5:56 pm wrote:Seriously guys - we won the games , we had all manner of wins - smashed some , won close games , sneaked a last minute winners

No team is “the finished article” - it’s amazing how many run down our team and the achievements last season as if it allows them to back up their opinion.

Come on Benny, it's obvious that we haven't got the ability to put teams under the cosh like City do, that's not denigrating what we did last year, that's just pointing out that there is room there for us to improve.
We should not be resting on our laurels thinking we are the finished article, every summer we should always be trying to be a better team than we were the season before.
Wanting a club of our stature to sign a couple of players is not asking a lot. We've been doing it every year since 1892 why not now?

ycsatbjywtbiastkamb » Sun Jul 07, 2019 10:38 pm wrote:

Lallana in Pyjamas » Sun Jul 07, 2019 5:56 pm wrote:Seriously guys - we won the games , we had all manner of wins - smashed some , won close games , sneaked a last minute winners

No team is “the finished article” - it’s amazing how many run down our team and the achievements last season as if it allows them to back up their opinion.

Come on Benny, it's obvious that we haven't got the ability to put teams under the cosh like City do, that's not denigrating what we did last year, that's just pointing out that there is room there for us to improve.
We should not be resting on our laurels thinking we are the finished article, every summer we should always be trying to be a better team than we were the season before.
Wanting a club of our stature to sign a couple of players is not asking a lot. We've been doing it every year since 1892 why not now?

1. We put plenty of teams under the cosh last season

2. There is always room to improve for every team but improving doesn’t automatically mean buying players

3. The club will sign players - 1 has already been bought another on the way and there is 7 weeks left to bring more in

What concerns me is not that we didn't play well last season obviously, but that we did it with no margin of error. I don't expect to bring in Mbappe or Demembele, ie major glamour signing, I just want players capable of rotating without loss of quality. Y'know, like Dirk, Yossi etc.. seamless switches.

Reg » Mon Jul 08, 2019 6:51 am wrote:What concerns me is not that we didn't play well last season obviously, but that we did it with no margin of error. I don't expect to bring in Mbappe or Demembele, ie major glamour signing, I just want players capable of rotating without loss of quality. Y'know, like Dirk, Yossi etc.. seamless switches.

Well said.

Reg » Mon Jul 08, 2019 7:51 am wrote:What concerns me is not that we didn't play well last season obviously, but that we did it with no margin of error. I don't expect to bring in Mbappe or Demembele, ie major glamour signing, I just want players capable of rotating without loss of quality. Y'know, like Dirk, Yossi etc.. seamless switches.

Do you mean players like

Matip
Lovren
Gini
Milner
Origi
Ox
Brewster plus multiple young players as well

The squad is a lot better than people give credit for

I disagree. No way we get 97 pts again with this squad. Everton, Newcastle, Spurs etc were all games that we got very lucky in.
Sure, good teams have luck, but normally you'd drop points in those kinds of games.

We have no depth at forward position. If Mane or Salah gets injured we're *****. Shaq is the only replacement we got. Origi has no chance in hell to play that role.
And no, Brewster will not do it either...

We had so few injuries last season which saved us, don't expect that again.

Lallana in Pyjamas » Mon Jul 08, 2019 4:39 am wrote:

ycsatbjywtbiastkamb » Sun Jul 07, 2019 10:38 pm wrote:

Lallana in Pyjamas » Sun Jul 07, 2019 5:56 pm wrote:Seriously guys - we won the games , we had all manner of wins - smashed some , won close games , sneaked a last minute winners

No team is “the finished article” - it’s amazing how many run down our team and the achievements last season as if it allows them to back up their opinion.

Come on Benny, it's obvious that we haven't got the ability to put teams under the cosh like City do, that's not denigrating what we did last year, that's just pointing out that there is room there for us to improve.
We should not be resting on our laurels thinking we are the finished article, every summer we should always be trying to be a better team than we were the season before.
Wanting a club of our stature to sign a couple of players is not asking a lot. We've been doing it every year since 1892 why not now?

1. We put plenty of teams under the cosh last season

2. There is always room to improve for every team but improving doesn’t automatically mean buying players

3. The club will sign players - 1 has already been bought another on the way and there is 7 weeks left to bring more in

Oh come on Ben, stop being obtuse, I never said that we didn't put teams under the cosh last season, I said that we don't put teams under the cosh like City do. City are very rarely put on the back foot, as I said even in games where they drop points they tend to dominate the game and create chance after chance, they just don't put their chances away and fall for a sucker punch.
There were plenty of games last season where we made heavy weather of it, the 2 games against Leicester for a start, the game at West Ham was another etc.
Again I'm not trying to denigrate what we did last year I'm just trying to point out that there is room for us to improve.
You say we are going to sign players but all the noises coming out of the club suggests that we are not, I won't even count that Dutch lad because unless he is the second coming of Franz Beckenbauer he won't be ready to be a regular starter for the first team until he is at least 20/21 and that's still young for a CB at a top club.
People turn their noses up at marquee type signings but look at the effect the likes of Virgil and Alisson have had on the team, I freely admit I was one of the staunchest defenders of the likes of Skrtel and Sakho but it's only when you get a top class player and see what they do week in week out that you realise what you have been missing.
At the risk of repeating myself, we are not the finished article, we can improve and we should be trying to improve. In a division like the prem where cash sloshes about standing still is effectively going backwards.

Penguins » Mon Jul 08, 2019 12:52 pm wrote:I disagree. No way we get 97 pts again with this squad. Everton, Newcastle, Spurs etc were all games that we got very lucky in.
Sure, good teams have luck, but normally you'd drop points in those kinds of games.

We have no depth at forward position. If Mane or Salah gets injured we're *****. Shaq is the only replacement we got. Origi has no chance in hell to play that role.
And no, Brewster will not do it either...

We had so few injuries last season which saved us, don't expect that again.

I believe we had more injuries than City , Spurs and Chelsea in regards to first team players.

ycsatbjywtbiastkamb » Mon Jul 08, 2019 1:32 pm wrote:
Oh come on Ben, stop being obtuse, I never said that we didn't put teams under the cosh last season, I said that we don't put teams under the cosh like City do. City are very rarely put on the back foot, as I said even in games where they drop points they tend to dominate the game and create chance after chance, they just don't put their chances away and fall for a sucker punch.

We aren’t City and we won’t be City because we don’t have over a billion pound ready to spend on fees and wages - we won’t ever be able to match their level of squad but they snuck past us by one single point

There were plenty of games last season where we made heavy weather of it, the 2 games against Leicester for a start, the game at West Ham was another etc.
Again I'm not trying to denigrate what we did last year I'm just trying to point out that there is room for us to improve.

We will improve - Klopp has improved us every single year why would he suddenly stop ? Can we not wait until the season gets going before the doom and gloom starts

You say we are going to sign players but all the noises coming out of the club suggests that we are not, I won't even count that Dutch lad because unless he is the second coming of Franz Beckenbauer he won't be ready to be a regular starter for the first team until he is at least 20/21 and that's still young for a CB at a top club.
People turn their noses up at marquee type signings but look at the effect the likes of Virgil and Alisson have had on the team, I freely admit I was one of the staunchest defenders of the likes of Skrtel and Sakho but it's only when you get a top class player and see what they do week in week out that you realise what you have been missing.

this time last summer the noise was that we won’t be signing a new GK - guess what happened , maybe don’t listen to noise and wait for the next 7 weeks and see what happens- Klopp has just got back from his holiday

At the risk of repeating myself, we are not the finished article, we can improve and we should be trying to improve. In a division like the prem where cash sloshes about standing still is effectively going backwards.

And who says we aren’t trying to improve - Christ Pre season hasn’t even started yet - how about we give the manager and his players a chance to get started

Interesting:

Liverpool risk sitting tight on new signings as new philosophy sees them promote from within
CHRIS BASCOMBE

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/20 ... ophy-sees/

There is an early winner in the ‘most predictable quote of the 2019-20 season’ competition.

Jurgen Klopp’s declaration Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Adam Lallana and Rhian Brewster are ‘new players’ confirmed the most significant return on investment Liverpool anticipate this season is from within.

“If Ox can stay fit – new player for us,” said Klopp. “Rhian the same; he is a really big talent. So, new player.

“Like Joe Gomez is pretty much a new player. Adam Lallana, new player.”

–– ADVERTISEMENT ––



Three new signings before the first pre-season fixture and – if we follow the same logic – more to come.

Liverpool need Naby Keita to find another level once he has put his injury troubles behind him. So too Xherdan Shaqiri, who started well but was more erratic as the season progressed in his debut campaign.


Add Harry Wilson and Ryan Kent – players who will return from successful loan spells in time for the pre-season tour of the US knowing they have a limited timeframe to prove their Liverpool careers are not in their final stages – and Klopp might argue Melwood is swarming with fresh talent.

Liverpool have made one genuinely new signing since the Champions League final – Dutch teenager Sepp van den Berg – but his introduction is unlikely to include much senior action beyond pre-season.

Given his age and experience, you can expect van den Berg to be one of a group of players who Klopp will describe as ‘like a new signing’ before the 2020-21 campaign.

The measured approach thus far is no surprise. Klopp flagged up his view Liverpool had no cause to replicate their record transfer outlay of 2018 prior to winning the Champions League, Virgil Van Dijk and Alisson Becker proof it is possible to locate final pieces of a jigsaw.

Sepp van den Berg of Liverpool during pre-season training at Melwood Training Ground on July 7, 2019 in Liverpool, England
Liverpool signed Sepp van den Berg earlier this summer CREDIT: GETTY IMAGES
With plenty of source material, Klopp and his recruitment team have decided a squad which collected 97 points and won the Champions League needs no great replenishment.

It may not be expressed publicly, but there will be some content at the sight of rivals scurrying around trying to replicate the Liverpool model circa 2015-2018 of ‘buy now, have less need to buy big later’. Without yet signing a cheque of any great significance, Liverpool’s recent work has earned more validation due to the tribulations of others, £50million full-backs swelling the value of Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold, while the £75m for Virgil Van Dijk is in danger of entering the realms of a successful bargain hunt in a world where Harry Maguire will cost £90m.

Nevertheless, there is a fine line between justifiable and smug self-satisfaction. Whether spending huge on established internationals or modestly on youth, a transfer policy is a perpetual exercise in risk and reward.

Even the most successful sides sought to strengthen in the immediate aftermath of a title – 198 points in two years has not stopped Manchester City paying a club record fee for Atletico Madrid midfielder Rodri – and sceptics will argue there is little prospect of Liverpool catching their moving target without at least one elite-level addition every year.

Manager Jurgen Klopp of Liverpool with James Milner and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain on the first day back of pre-season at Melwood Training Ground on July 6, 2019 in Liverpool, England
Klopp alongside James Milner and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain CREDIT: GETTY IMAGES
Liverpool counter this by pointing out more than £120m has already been spent on improved contracts in 2019, with more to follow. Any characterisation of the club keeping its hands in its pockets is palpably untrue.

There is also a sense of Liverpool’s now famed recruitment team scrutinising the market as much in preparation for future transfer windows as now, funds kept aside so to be ready to pounce for world class players as and when they are available. Liverpool operate in different circles now and there is a smaller pool of talent capable of challenging for a first team place.

That said, it remains a curiosity that having sought a Philippe Coutinho replacement a year ago – a midfielder to link to and potentially be part of the three man attack – Liverpool called off that particular search after Nabil Fekir’s failed medical. For all Liverpool’s excellence last season, the creative void left by the Anfield version of Coutinho lingers.

Klopp’s faith in fit-again Oxlade-Chamberlain and Brewster, especially, will require swift payback given the daunting schedule facing Liverpool over the next eight months.

Brewster is yet to make a senior appearance, yet when it was evident Daniel Sturridge’s contract would not be renewed, the youngster’s elevation was cited as the reason no direct replacement will be bought. Patience is required and will no doubt be called for, but the step up will be swift.


The start of the season includes a Community Shield meeting with City which will be fiercely contested rather than a glorified friendly, before the UEFA Super Cup final against Chelsea in Istanbul on 14 August.

It remains to be seen how many of Klopp’s favoured XI will be match-ready for the start of the Premier League season against Norwich City, although Egypt’s elimination from the African Cup of Nations is actually a relief to Liverpool fans as Mohamed Salah will be back sooner than anticipated.

Should Senegal progress to the final, Sadio Mane’s late return means he will be fortunate to make the bench in the opening week, offering an early chance for the deputies to assert or reassert their credentials.

Liverpool are under no illusions that to keep pace with City, they will once more have to sprint out of the blocks and maintain their speed for 38 games.

In all, Liverpool will fight for six trophies this season, including Fifa’s World Club Championships – a punishing schedule from which to judge Klopp's latest demonstration of trust in what he already has.

For guidance, in 2018 Real Madrid played their semi-final in Abu Dhabi on 19 December, with the final three days later.

It’s hard to imagine a similar calendar being agreeable to Klopp in 2019, given Liverpool’s Premier League games on 21, 26 and 28 December, as well as New Year’s Day.

The planning for that can move apace once Fifa has the competence to tell competing clubs when the tournament will be held.

Those responsible for rebuilding Liverpool have earned so much trust over the past four years only those with a first class degree in churlishness can query their approach this summer.

Klopp and his scouting team have more than enough credit in the bank. We’ll know soon enough how wise they are to wait their moment before spending any more of it on expensive new recruits.