Liverpool 2014/15 | WARNING: Contains strong amounts of Scouse nonsense

Manucho the boss said:
You do know his name isn't Rogers yes?

Not sure if it was Rodgers idea to buy Balotelli or not but he seems to have upset the closeness in the squad you had last season.


The games I've seen from Balotelli so far suggest he's too lazy to even run back onside at times, his teammates see this and get frustrated which only leads to arguments. You do have some easier looking fixtures coming up and I think Sturridge will make a big difference if you can keep him fit.
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Yea I know it's Rodgers, depends what's in my spellchecker that I cba correcting at that time.

You do know I'm not a Liverpool fan too ;) I'm one of the worst for giving these lads shite, it's to the point where I think @Cina keeps a special eye on me.

Your right about Balo though, he's been fairly dreadful so far, they've gone from having a problematic defence, to a problematic attack and midfield :lol: worse than Balo has been Gerrard though, I mean he's ok with the ball but without it he looks borderline clueless.
 
gasmanc said:
Yea I know it's Rodgers, depends what's in my spellchecker that I cba correcting at that time.

You do know I'm not a Liverpool fan too ;) I'm one of the worst for giving these lads shite, it's to the point where I think @Cina keeps a special eye on me.

Your right about Balo though, he's been fairly dreadful so far, they've gone from having a problematic defence, to a problematic attack and midfield :lol: worse than Balo has been Gerrard though, I mean he's ok with the ball but without it he looks borderline clueless.
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I appreciate your tirade against Pool as much as anyone but some of the comments in this thread can be a bit too WUMish at times. And when rival fans WUM about Utd they usually get blasted on here. Can't have double standards across the board!
 
Did Liverpool make a mistake not bringing in Origi in this season rather than let him stay at Lille for a season. He's different to the rest of your strikers currently fit, he likes to run in behind and make dangerous runs. He's quick & strong and although he may not be the best finisher, he would bring out the best in Coutinho and Sterling.
 
Cina said:
I appreciate your tirade against Pool as much as anyone but some of the comments in this thread can be a bit too WUMish at times. And when rival fans WUM about Utd they usually get blasted on here. Can't have double standards across the board!
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Yea I appreciate that and I monitored my posts and ignore list accordingly ;) Would like it on record that I never actually mean offence it's just that I'm a bit of cnut from time to time.
 
They have had a poor start but we are only 1 point ahead!

I like how they have more problems than we do so we can assume it will take them longer to hit form.
 
gasmanc said:
Would you put him in DM ahead of Gerrard though ?
He would likely be perfect in your system and if you need to be more offensive later on then bring in a rested Ste me for latter stages.
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Yes. I think Gerard hasn't been the same since the Ba incident. I think he needs to be used more sparingly and younger lads learning their trade like rossiter need to be played against the likes of Basle.
 
SambaBoy said:
Did Liverpool make a mistake not bringing in Origi in this season rather than let him stay at Lille for a season. He's different to the rest of your strikers currently fit, he likes to run in behind and make dangerous runs. He's quick & strong and although he may not be the best finisher, he would bring out the best in Coutinho and Sterling.
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If we could have brought thin in I really doubt we'd have gone for Balotelli. However the reason we were able to get him was because we agreed to Lille's demand that we loan him back there for one season. It probably saved us £5-10m on his fee which we blew on Balo.
 
WBA at Anfield up next.

Pity Sakho is still injured because Skrtel was shite at Basel and cost us the goal with his inane attempt at fouling instead of watching the ball until the last second.
Gerrard shouldn't play but will with the International break coming up. Sub him off later if needs be.
WBA are going to sit deep like every other sod coming to Anfield now ...... which means I'm tempted to try something slightly different (though I'd prefer Sterling - Balo up front but I know BR won't do that). So I'll leave Coutinho out as there won't be much space behind their back line again and also again we won't have the players making runs into the channels.

Whatever his weaknesses, Lambo holds the ball up brilliantly, is ace in the air and adds another goal-scoring threat too, having someone ahead of him will also help Balo. Henderson and Lallana have oodles of energy to help track back on the wings and Manquillo and Moreno can work with those two to exploit the wide areas. Sterling can go where the hell he likes so making it harder for them to double/triple up on him.

It looks like we might be leaving Gerrard a little isolated but Manquillo and Moreno will be around and as I have said all three of Henderson, Sterling and Lallana are very good at tracking back.

.................................Ming

Manquillo ..... Skrtel ....... Lovren ..... Moreno

...............................Gerrard

Henderson ..............Sterling ............. Lallana

..............Balotelli
.............................. Lambert

Valdes Jones, Toure, Lucas, Rossiter, Coutinho, Markovic, Borini
 
Rafateria said:
Rodgers' has got a lot on his plate but we do have the youngest squad in the league, I think this is partly why he bought Lambert, another old head to help the younger players.
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Is this still true? I know it was for a couple of years, but I heard somewhere that Newcastle was the youngest now. Finding it hard to find reliable stats though.
 
Rafateria said:
Rodgers' has got a lot on his plate but we do have the youngest squad in the league, I think this is partly why he bought Lambert, another old head to help the younger players.
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Surely a player experienced at winning titles would be better than a player experienced at not winning things.

If you want a midtable finish then fair enough, I'll accept Lambert was a good buy. But Lambert doesn't have any experience in challenging for top four. Flanagan is more experienced at this than Lambert.
 
SambaBoy said:
Did Liverpool make a mistake not bringing in Origi in this season rather than let him stay at Lille for a season. He's different to the rest of your strikers currently fit, he likes to run in behind and make dangerous runs. He's quick & strong and although he may not be the best finisher, he would bring out the best in Coutinho and Sterling.
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Nah, I think loaning him out for another season is ideal for both parties. Is he getting game time playing as the actual striker at Lille? I know last season he was mainly used as a LW. What you mention - namely what he offers, is what Sturridge does. Once Sturridge is back fit Coutinho and Sterling will have more of a target to aim at with forward passes and a player willing to make runs. Balotelli isn't suiting their style at all at the moment.
 
Stick said:
Yes. I think Gerard hasn't been the same since the Ba incident. I think he needs to be used more sparingly and younger lads learning their trade like rossiter need to be played against the likes of Basle.
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Heard fan talk of him being used higher up, where he can't be targeted as so much of a weak link, he's clearly still as talented as ever but not in defensive midfield, total fish out of water. Yes the closing stages of last season have certainly had an effect on him but at 34 there should still be a bit in the tank.
 
Raoul said:
Normal business slowly resuming at Anfield....

http://www.espnfc.co.uk/club/liverp...west-brom-could-lead-to-liverpool-crisis-talk
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Totaly missed they are on so bad run but i should noticed because we laugh at them week in week out. 1 point from 9, bad in CL and nearly out of Carling Cup. That is some trouble. Still they are just a point behind us and 3 behind Arsenal and 4 behind City but still they are playing against inform West Brom and i can see them dropping the points. If they lose they will be under really big pressure.
 
gasmanc said:
Heard fan talk of him being used higher up, where he can't be targeted as so much of a weak link, he's clearly still as talented as ever but not in defensive midfield, total fish out of water. Yes the closing stages of last season have certainly had an effect on him but at 34 there should still be a bit in the tank.
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Possibly could play the sort of role lampard has played for City this season?

Prob wouldn't have the legs for full games in an attacking role but he could do it off the bench I'd imagine. His free kicks are still decent so his shooting hasn't completely gone to sh*te.
 
Gerrard's biggest problem in my view is the amount he's playing. Thought it was bad enough that he played near enough every minute of every league game he was fit for last season but now he's playing every CL game too. It's too much to ask of him - he's obviously not the player he was but overplaying him is increasing the problem.
 
Rafateria said:
WBA at Anfield up next.



.................................Ming

Manquillo ..... Skrtel ....... Lovren ..... Moreno

...............................Gerrard

Henderson ..............Sterling ............. Lallana

..............Balotelli
.............................. Lambert

Valdes Jones, Toure, Lucas, Rossiter, Coutinho, Markovic, Borini
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Did I miss something here, or wishful thinking.... I thought maximum number of subs named for the premier league was seven
 
Gerrard should play in the No.10 role, that's where he was always at his best.
 
Bob Loblaw said:
Gerrard's biggest problem in my view is the amount he's playing. Thought it was bad enough that he played near enough every minute of every league game he was fit for last season but now he's playing every CL game too. It's too much to ask of him - he's obviously not the player he was but overplaying him is increasing the problem.
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What other options do you have though? I saw Lucas in pre season, looks like his legs have gone which is no surprise after those knee surgeries. Can Emre Can play there or is he more of an attacking mid? Henderson's strength is his mobility and stamina to keep running, you lose that if you tell him to sit deep. Maybe Joe Allen can make that position his own?
 
Bob Loblaw said:
Gerrard's biggest problem in my view is the amount he's playing. Thought it was bad enough that he played near enough every minute of every league game he was fit for last season but now he's playing every CL game too. It's too much to ask of him - he's obviously not the player he was but overplaying him is increasing the problem.
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That's only a part of it for me, he's looked devoid of confidence and his positioning is awful at times, as mentioned by Storey his strength is in the final third, he's simply not got the brain for reading the game to be protecting a shaky back four.
 
Manucho the boss said:
Possibly could play the sort of role lampard has played for City this season?

Prob wouldn't have the legs for full games in an attacking role but he could do it off the bench I'd imagine. His free kicks are still decent so his shooting hasn't completely gone to sh*te.
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Set pieces, penalties, shooting and free kicks are his best asset but as you have mentioned since, what other options have they got ?
Lucas did alright in DM before his cruciate op but he still might be a better option but failing that Henderson can surely fill in, Rodge might have to drop the diamond and play a four man ?
 
Manucho the boss said:
What other options do you have though? I saw Lucas in pre season, looks like his legs have gone which is no surprise after those knee surgeries. Can Emre Can play there or is he more of an attacking mid? Henderson's strength is his mobility and stamina to keep running, you lose that if you tell him to sit deep. Maybe Joe Allen can make that position his own?
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Yeah we're hardly blessed with options. In fairness to Rodgers I was happy enough with our midfield choices going into the season so would only be using hindsight if I said he should have strengthened better.

As for going forward, hopefully our injuries clear up. If they do I'd like to see Emre Can given a shot in the holding role. I haven't seen much of him really so only going on description but he sounds like a versatile midfielder who could do a job there. Wouldn't really like to see Allen in the holding role though, he's better playing across from Henderson in the diamond.

Lucas is a weird one. I wouldn't want him anywhere near first choice but I think he's been made to look a lot worse than he is by constantly playing along with Gerrard. Neither are very mobile any more so together they both end up looking terribly. He plays alright (nothing special, but fine to fill in) on his own in the holding role.

Plus, Rodgers for some weird reason is playing a 4-2-3-1 at the minute. Henderson in that deep role just doesn't work, no idea why it's being used.
 
gasmanc said:
That's only a part of it for me, he's looked devoid of confidence and his positioning is awful at times, as mentioned by Storey his strength is in the final third, he's simply not got the brain for reading the game to be protecting a shaky back four.
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Yeah it's only part of it. He's never going to be great defensively and is one of the reasons why we're leaking goals. At least when he's well rested he's slightly better in that respect though.

At his peak he was at his best playing further forward. Not sure about now, but I'd guess a big reason why he starts in a deeper role is that he's not as good as our options there, which is a stronger area for us than holding midfield.
 
What about playing that young lad Rossiter as the deepest. Isn't he meant to be the next big thing?
 
peterstorey said:
Gerrard should play in the No.10 role, that's where he was always at his best.
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They don't have enough central midfielders though if they want to use Gerrard higher up the pitch. Can and Allen are injured whilst Lucas is not good enough. They only have Gerrard and Henderson available right now for the central midfield spot. I am just puzzled as to why the ageing Gerrard is being played in a midfield duo. Gerrard doesn't have the mobility and legs on him to shield the defense. It limits Henderson offensively as he will need to be more conservative playing alongside Gerrard.

You look at ageing midfielders like Alonso and Pirlo, they were best utlizied in a midifeld trio with proper runners (Modric, Di Maria and Vidal, Pogba)alongside them. I won't say Gerrard is as good as them or has a similar style of play but you can clearly see the common physical deficiencies amongst these players. If there is one thing that I'm impressed about Gerrard it is his passing. He used to be rather hit-and-miss with his reckless hollywood passing but he has added consistency and intelligence to his passing game as is natural with experience. His distribution of the ball from the deep has been really impressive for about 2 years now and Liverpool would do well to get a commanding destroyer in midfield to partner Gerrard and Henderson. It will relieve Gerrard of his defensive duties to a certain extent whilst allowing Henderson to have more freedom to impose himself on the game and also adds steel and solidity to their shaky defense.
 
Gerrard doesn't have the tactical nouse to play that deeper role. I agree that a free role off the forwards has always been his best position. It produced his finest season when he played in behind Torres with Alonso and Mascherano holding.
 
gasmanc said:
Heard fan talk of him being used higher up, where he can't be targeted as so much of a weak link, he's clearly still as talented as ever but not in defensive midfield, total fish out of water. Yes the closing stages of last season have certainly had an effect on him but at 34 there should still be a bit in the tank.
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One of Gerards great strengths last season was his influence. With Henderson, Allen, Sterling, Flanagan all looking to him for guidance in a league title run in. All these young english and welsh lads who would have really looked up to him. He then had a bit of a mare himself on the run in and some of these new lads maybe don't see Gerard as the leader the other young brits would have. The team looks completely disjointed at the moment and on pitch bickering is something rodgers needs to right and quickly. I was one who thought balotelli was a bargain but at the moment he's poison both playing and to others around him.
 
Stick said:
balotelli was a bargain but at the moment he's poison
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That's unarguable and it's a perfect career summary, he will give you the best and worst of himself no matter where he is.
Gerrard though, the longer you play him the better for me as a United fan, he's literally playing every game in a congested season and he's learning a role where mistakes kill you. Physical tiredness has a direct affect on your decision making and thought speed, Gerrards living proof at the minute.
 
Instead of Baltotelli and Lambert they could of had Welbeck and Etoo for the same prices. Them 2 would of fitted into the side much better although maybe United would not sell to Liverpool ?
 
BigDunc9 said:
Instead of Baltotelli and Lambert they could of had Welbeck and Etoo for the same prices. Them 2 would of fitted into the side much better although maybe United would not sell to Liverpool ?
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Welbeck to Liverpool wouldn't happen in a million years. Eto'o would've been a much better transfer than Balotelli though.
 
Come to think of it, whatever happened to Jon Flanagan? I thought he did really good last year for Liverpool.
 
Bwuk said:
Come to think of it, whatever happened to Jon Flanagan? I thought he did really good last year for Liverpool.
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To be fair, every single Liverpool player looks like a shadow of what they were last season so far. Whatever teams spirit they had, is broken,
 
Kentonio said:
Is this still true? I know it was for a couple of years, but I heard somewhere that Newcastle was the youngest now. Finding it hard to find reliable stats though.
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Just going quickly through PL FootballSquads and I can't find any other squad coming even close. I used 1990 as the base and then counted under/over from there (so not 100% accurate but certainly close enough). Of the 27 players Liverpool have used so far this year the average age is just over 23.5 yrs old (United's for comparison is still young but closer to 25.5 exc. players that have left the club after the season started. Spurs' squad has quite a low average too, although at 25.5 that would be around 25 without Friedl and Newcastle are similar to that too), and that includes Gerrard 34, Toure 33, Jones 32, Johnson 30, Lambert 32 most of whom will be gone or on the bench next season, and in fact with the exception of Gerrard won't be involved much this season either, minutes-wise. It really is a very young squad so we should be prepared for some inconsistency.
 
Empire said:
Surely a player experienced at winning titles would be better than a player experienced at not winning things.

If you want a midtable finish then fair enough, I'll accept Lambert was a good buy. But Lambert doesn't have any experience in challenging for top four. Flanagan is more experienced at this than Lambert.
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All squads need to have some experienced players though, to help them keep confidence up when something goes awry, it's life experience as much as football experience that is important. Of course in a run-in for the title or cup final then players that have been there, done that, are going to be invaluable. But for the other 95% of the season someone like Lambert in the changing room can only help the youngsters.
 
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