Liverpool 2018/19
- Thread starter Adisa
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Didn't watch City's game last night (did Sterling play as a CM?) but watched the game at Anfield earlier this season. You couldn't create a decent chance all game.
Btw, what I said is based on stats in the EPL, not on personal impressions from some games. E.g., both teams played 3 away games against the top 6 and you conceded 3 goals whereas they conceded 0 goals. Maybe, just maybe, the've been a little bit more solid than you.
To mount a serious title challenge is to be close to the top come March/April. Being 2 pts off City in November doesn't mean much in the context of what I said.
They'll be fine. Napoli are nothing special. Anfield will witness another "miracle".
Whatever minor shot they have at the league title will completely evaporate if they drop down to the Europa. Coping with an unstoppable City and the EL for however long they may be in it is just not done. Their title challenge could hinge on the game against Napoli.
Think they'd play the reserves if they dropped to the EL (provided they still could win the PL).
I think they would still play Shaqiri, Keita, Fabinho and Sturridge. Playing in the EL could still drain their bench options. Sturridge and Shaqiri have been useful for them.
Commentators curse on him from me last night. He looked awful. Never got close to the PSG midfield and allowed them to break at pace without even putting tackles in. He and Winaldum were poor and Milner was at least trying to make it tough for them. Marquinhos and Verata played well.
We'll be closer to United than City come end of the season. And you're a pretty bad football team.
We are talking about 8-9 games at best, not about 15-20. It's good for the players who don't start often in the league to have more games.
The opposite of what you say is true for me: they stand a chance to win the PL only if they don't try to win the CL at the same time.
If they drop in the EL and are still close to City come February/March, they will concentrate on the PL and that will be their big chance to win it. EL won't be the thing that stops them. On the contrary, absence of CL games could help their league campaign because their style requires a lot of energy. The front 3 have already played significantly more minutes than City's forwards.
They have lost 3 Champions League away games in a row. That's bad for a club like them.
5 non-home games including the CL final.
It will be interesting to see how Klopp rotates his squad leading up to the Napoli game.
They have Everton at home on Sunday, then Burnley and Bournmouth away before they face Napoli 72 hours later.
Napoli have Atlanta away this weekend, then play the team sitting second from bottom in Seria A, at home, the weekend before the Liverpool game.
Napoli can virtually have a 10 day winter break before the clash at Anfield.
They have Everton at home on Sunday, then Burnley and Bournmouth away before they face Napoli 72 hours later.
Napoli have Atlanta away this weekend, then play the team sitting second from bottom in Seria A, at home, the weekend before the Liverpool game.
Napoli can virtually have a 10 day winter break before the clash at Anfield.
Have to say if I was told at the start of the season that we would lose all our away CL group games but after 13 league games we would be unbeaten and just tw points off City I'd have taken that without a seconds thought.
There is still a very real possibility that we will have CL football in the new year and I fancy us to beat Napoli to nil. There is no doubt the team is crying out for a Coutinho or Fekir type player to link the play to the front three but all in all people need to relax questioning the team!
There is still a very real possibility that we will have CL football in the new year and I fancy us to beat Napoli to nil. There is no doubt the team is crying out for a Coutinho or Fekir type player to link the play to the front three but all in all people need to relax questioning the team!
We're almost in December. How has Klopp not successfully integrated at least one of Keita/Fabinho?
Maybe they are not that good.
If there is a fault in Klopp it is that while he generally ends up with the right outcome, he's a bit slow to get there at times. Lovren -> Gomez, that neither Mignolet nor Karius are good enough, that Moreno is a shadow of the player Robertson is. Here, him being generally quite loyal to his first teamers, requiring a period of integration for anyone who wants to play midfield in his team, and perhaps neither of them being that quick on the uptake in regards to those requirements, have probably slowed things a bit further.
He'll get there though, I am confident. Same as happened with Chamberlain and Robertson last year.
Last season, it was december before Robertson became a regular, having started only 2 league games till then. Chamberlain had made 3 league starts at this stage (2 of them in late november).
Fabinho has 3 league starts so far, Keita 4. I reckon we'll start seeing them more in December. Henderson banned for the next game and the vast desert between attack and midfield we currently have means there are gaps for them eagerly waiting to be closed. At the moment it's only really Wijnaldum making a case for starting ahead of them.
If I never see Henderson Wijnaldum and Milner in the same midfield again it’ll be too soon.
Is Milner not playing to help cover for Robertson when he goes forward? The deepest player is either Henderson or Fabinho, neither have looked great. Then I guess it's Wijnaldum vs Keita for the last spot.
We're badly missing some connections from midfield to attack. The original plan was to have Keita as an 8 with the technical ability to also do much of what a 10 does, and Fekir as a 10 with the workrate and tenacity to also chip in as an 8.
Right now we have Henderson who leaves it for the centrebacks to make the forward passes from deep and two 8s in Milner and Wijnaldum, who are both more focused on just getting the ball to the front 3 rather than actually try and link up with them. In isolation, both are OK for the 8 role (wijnaldum better than OK. At least at Anfield), but it's a problem when none of our midfielders do more than that.
When you look at the balance between midfield and attack they offer, it's miles away from that original plan.
We're patching it Shaqiri in midfield and hopefully Keita can find some form and alleviate it somewhat till January. But we're basically just holding it till we can get a proper 8/10 in and actually fix the issue properly.
Agreed.
The problem I have with Henderson, Gigi and Milner is that they're very similar players. They don't offer much going forward or defending. Play one or two but not all three together.
The problem I have with Henderson, Gigi and Milner is that they're very similar players. They don't offer much going forward or defending. Play one or two but not all three together.
So it was supposed to be Keita, Fekir and a DM? Fabinho?
Or Hendo. I don't know how Klopp saw them relative to each other longterm. He loves Hendo a lot.
Hendo is regressing badly this season though. He's basically given up on being a passer of the ball, outside of giving it to the backfour. If Fabinho adapts, then the spot is there for the taking.
Does Fekir actually pick up number 8 positions for Lyon though? Is it only because of his work rate that Liverpool fans think he would work as a fake 8/10? In my head having Keita and Fekir in midfield while Robertson is bombing down the left seems very open.
What I mean is more along the lines that any 10 in Klopp's system needs to have workrate enough to fulfil basic midfield obligations off the ball and then learn some positional discpiline in that role. From what I've seen of Fekir, he has enough of that in his game that I think he'll be a good fit. That's also why it took Chamberlain so long before he was afforded any game time in midfield after joining from Arsenal. He's a hard worker, but hadn't learned the requisite skills under Wenger to play in midfield. He'd be a god send for us atm though.
I don't think he's expecting defensive miracles from a 10 (he played Coutinho plenty there last season after all). But as templates go, I do think he's looking for someone more like Iniesta, who put in plenty of midfield graft for a 10, than Zidane, who expected others to carry water for him. Chamberlain and Lallana prior to his injuries both fulfilled that. I think Fekir would be ideal.
Another thread which 'if someone told me at the beginning of the season......."
Well if I told you now, that Liverpool will lose the league title on one goal on the final day of the season, would you take it ?
Not that straight forward is it ?
I see. Well Im guessing he will get more money to spend next summer so we’ll know soon.
I don't think we'll be able to cross the finishing lines we're hoping to cross this season if we don't act in January. This midfield won't last us the season, unless Keita and Fabinho start performing miracles.
I wonder could the return of Ox near march give the midfield a small shot in the arm.
Too little too late, I fear. Maybe Klopp was hoping Lallana might do something, but he looks finished.
I doubt any board in world football would agree to signing another midfielder in january when the manager has 100 million pounds worth of midfielders he just signed 4 months ago on the bench...
Why not? We had one wearing our shirt with his name and on it and ready to pay 50m for him back in june after having signed those two just a few weeks earlier. The original plan was to get three in. Not two. We're still missing the third player.
Well the price will also be higher in January.
The positive for you and my worry is that you're still undefeated, 2 points behind City without Fabinho and especially Keita making an impact yet. If Keita suddenly clicks then you might be pushing City all the way.
It's about time you had a few dud signings though after a string of successes.
So is the price for not getting one (Fekir) in.
Allison and Van Dijk have been massive for us. Last seasons defence coupled with these performances and we would be mid-table.
Bottlers. Will end up trophyless. Wait and see.
What is going to change? You’re not winning the title anyway.
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