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QPR 2 Liverpool 3 (Oct 19 2014)


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Report by
Dave Usher
 
 
 

I’ve been saying for weeks that the only thing I care about right now is picking up points and I don’t care how we do it. Performances will come, but for now we just need to find a way to win. I should be happy with this one then, right? Wrong. It might be somewhat hypocritical, but I guess I do care how we do it after all, up to a point at least. If we’d held on the 1-0 I’d have been fine with that. It would have been an unconvincing, disappointing performance but so what, just take the 1-0 and get out.

 

For us to win it the way we did though, well I don’t really know what we’re supposed to think about it. I can’t ever remember a more unconvincing, undeserved, troubling win. I was happy to get three points but the over riding feeling after this was of barely controlled fury at how close we went - twice - to throwing this away. Just how lucky can one team be? We not only got out of jail, we escaped from death row just as the executioner was plugging in the chair. QPR hit the woodwork twice, put the ball in their own net twice and even our other goal went in with a big deflection off one of their defenders. I’ll take the points, but it was daylight robbery. I thought Everton’s smash and grab point at Anfield the other week was bad, but this one by far eclipsed that.

 

What happened in the closing stages of this game was so alarming that I can’t even take any pleasure from the fact we won. Relief, yes, pleasure, no. We looked terrible all over the park, as we have for most of the season so far. Not one area of the side is functioning anywhere near how we need it to. Mignolet was one of our better players and made at least two terrific saves as well as several other routine ones, but he still had his ‘moments’ and is about as convincing as Professor Tom Cannon’s syrup.

 

Still, he’s more convincing than Balotelli at the other end of the pitch. Hand on heart, that might have been the worst display I’ve ever seen from any Liverpool centre forward. Bobby Zamora looked like Marco Van Basten in comparison to Mario, and I’m staggered that he managed to avoid being subbed. Rickie Lambert must have been fucking seething. The first half saw Balotelli just shooting from silly positions, complaining about rough challenges or generally killing our attacks by his lack of brains or ball control.

 

On several occasions you could see the likes of Gerrard, Sterling and Henderson completely losing their rag with him and who can blame them? The second half was better in terms of him not just shooting from anywhere, and he got into several good shooting positions inside the box but they were either blocked or he just made a complete mess of them. He did one thing right in the entire 90 minutes, and that was a nice little flick he rolled into Gerrard just before half time that almost resulted in the game’s opening goal.

 

That was the first time Gerrard had any real involvement in the game. Brendan had started him as a ‘number 10’ with Emre Can in the holding role and Lallana and Henderson either side of the midfield diamond and Sterling up front. On paper that looked great and I’m sure a lot of us were happy with the selection. It never, ever looked like working though and the entire first half we were truly woeful. It was as bad as anything served up under Rodgers, particularly as QPR are probably the worst (or second worst) team in the league.

 

It was a miracle we went in at half time level as our goal had led a charmed life. Fer hit the post, Zamora hit the bar and Mignolet made a great save to keep out Austin. There were some incredible let offs and something had to give. Rodgers changed things at half time by dropping Gerrard back and using Can and Henderson further forward than they had been and it worked, to a fashion anyway.

 

We were definitely better after the break, QPR caused us a lot less problems and we kept the ball a lot better. That was in part due to Gerrard being able to get on the ball but I suspect it also had much to do with QPR’s players being unable to maintain the frantic pace they’d played at in the opening 45. As the pace of the game slowed a little we began to regain some semblance of control, but even then it wasn’t as though their keeper had much to do. It was still poor, it just wasn’t as horribly bad as the first half.

 

Then the moment we’d all been waiting for arrived; Lallana got free in the box, his shot was parried by McCarthy but went straight to Balotelli, six yards out with the goal gaping. Just what he needed, he’s not had anything fall for him in weeks and just needed a goal to get him going, right? And here it was, a tap in to put us in front and make everyone forget just how wretched he’d been in the first half. And the silly twat skied it over the bar. Fucking hell, Mario.

 

It can happen to anyone of course, but the disconcerting thing with Balotelli is that you have absolutely no idea what he’s thinking, how it’s affected him, is his confidence shot to pieces or will it make him more determined? Why do we have no idea? Because his facial expression and body language never changes regardless of what’s happening. He always looks like a kid that’s been sent to bed without any supper, even when he’s just scored he’s got the same sad and confused look on his face.

 

I really thought Rodgers was going to sub him immediately and the only reason I can think of as to why he didn’t is that he wanted to show him support when he needed it most. His comments following the game were incredibly supportive too, and I think that’s probably the right way to deal with it as - like it or not - we’re stuck with him until Sturridge eventually returns. That’s if he ever returns, the delicate little flower that he is. With so many games in a short space of time I expect to see Lambert getting the odd start too, but we need Mario and despite how horrific he was at Loftus Road I’d give Brendan credit for how he handled this. Hopefully he’ll reap the rewards for that over the next couple of weeks.

 

Given the way the game was going it was quite fitting that it was an own goal that broke the deadlock as neither attack looked capable of doing it. QPR created chances but weren’t capable of finishing them, while we were generally so crap we weren’t even creating chances. The one bright spark was Sterling and he was involved in all three of our goals. The first one, which would have been the decisive goal if we weren’t so completely shambolic at the back, came when Raheem was fouled but was smart enough to take a quick free-kick when no-one else was paying any attention. No-one other than the equally alert Johnson that is, who surged to the byline and drilled the ball across looking for Balotelli and forced Dunne to divert into his own net.

 

Mario had his back turned initially and he’s taken some stick for that, but in fairness he was in position at the back post if Dunne hadn’t got there first. Whether he’d have finished it we’ll never know of course, but some of the criticism for that particular incident was a bit OTT I thought. It was a bit concerning how he wasn’t paying attention, but the same was true of half the other players on the field so it wasn’t just him. What makes it worse is that the man he has replaced was probably the most alert, streetwise, cunning player on the planet who lives for that kind of moment. Suarez anticipated things five seconds before they happened. Sometimes Mario isn’t even aware of them five seconds after they’ve happened.

 

Once we had our noses in front we should have killed them off as the opportunities were there on the break to do so but we didn’t make the most of them. Some of the counter attacks were decent but when it came to getting the final pass or shot in, QPR usually managed to make a block or interception. The introductions of Coutinho and Allen for Can and Lallana helped us get a better grip on the game and the Brazilian looked quite sharp and busy I thought.

 

He was indirectly involved in the QPR equaliser with three minutes left when he prevented them from taking a quick free kick and was booked for it. Worse than that, him delaying the game played right into their hands as it allowed them to send all the big men forward into the box. He would have been far better off letting them take a quick one but in the heat of the moment you can’t really make a decision as rationally as that so I don’t especially blame him for it.

 

We’d looked vulnerable in the air all game so it wasn’t exactly a shock that we conceded in the way we did, but that doesn’t make it any easier to take. Traore took the ball on his chest and then headed it twice before we managed to partially get it clear. How can that happen? Players shouldn’t be taking a ball on their chest unchallenged, it should have been headed away before it reached him. And then for him to be able to play head tennis with himself?

 

The ball ended up on their right and Enrique dived in needlessly and then compounded that error by not tracking his runner, who ended up with a simple finish. A comedy of errors. This shit is completely embarrassing and it’s been going on for years.

 

Incredibly we managed to bounce back from it and retake the lead with a swift counter attack. Sterling did well to roll his man and lead the break out, the ball eventually went to Coutinho on the left and he cut inside before hitting a low shot that went in off the leg of Caulker. McCarthy was saving that comfortably before the deflection so we got lucky there. Still, we’ll take it and the three points after almost throwing them away.

 

Except we didn’t take it did we, we gave up an even worse goal to make it 2-2. I hadn’t actually realised just how inexcusably bad this one was until I saw Carra and Neville dissecting it on MNF. My heart sank when I realised just how bad this one was, and also the part that Gerrard played in it. It was his job to protect that area and he didn’t do it because he was arguing with Vargas and the referee. He’s old enough to know better than that, but it looked like the only two who were even paying attention were Allen and Mignolet, yet the ball somehow still squirmed between both of them and over the line. Not sure if either of them could have done better, but Gerrard certainly could have.

 

We could easily have lost it from there as QPR got their tails right up and this one just reeked of Crystal Palace didn’t it? There was still time for Balotelli to infuriate once more when he tried to back heel a cross into the net and put it wide. Just side foot it in you fucking plank, you pull shit like that when we’re three or four goals up not when we’ve twice blown a lead and are hanging on for a a 2-2. Idiot.

 

Then QPR got another free-kick right at the death and I’m thinking, here we go. They got cold feet though and kept both centre backs on the halfway line, which would prove costly as we were able to head it clear and then counter attack through Coutinho. As he carried it forward and I saw Sterling make a run through the centre it was obvious what was going to happen, that’s the situation when Coutinho is at his best. The ball he played through was actually a carbon copy of one he put through to Neymar last week for Brazil, just a beautifully weighted pass right into the space.

 

I thought Sterling should have gone on his own but he tried to square it for Balotelli and the backtracking Caulker got his feet all messed up and put it into his own net. I didn’t even cheer, I’d been too angry to be able to suddenly switch to joy. I just sat there in a state of stunned silence, wondering how the hell all this had just happened. We’d been 1-0 up with three minutes left and ended up winning 3-2 having scored twice in stoppage time. Rodgers praised the spirit and attitude of his players to be able to bounce back twice in the way they did, but honestly I think that’s giving them way too much credit. I just think they got really, really, lucky. All three goals were flukey and on most days none of those go in.

 

We’ve got big problems. Any time an opponent puts us under any kind of sustained pressure (especially the aerial stuff) we buckle. We seem to let in at least one goal a game from set-pieces and we can’t keep blaming the players for it as it’s 100% a coaching issue now, I’m convinced of it. It might be individual mistakes, but why are we making these mistakes all the time regardless of what personnel we choose? Because they aren’t coached properly, that’s why.

 

For us to still be this bad defensively in Brendan’s third year is just not acceptable. He obviously can’t fix it as we aren’t even seeing slight signs of improvement despite the vast amount of money spent on ‘upgrading’ the back four and goalkeeper, so it’s time he put his ego to one side and brought someone in who can actually sort it out. Doing that would be a sign of strength, not weakness.

 

One thing is for certain, if he doesn’t sort it out it will eventually cost him his job as you simply can’t hope to be successful when defending the way we do. We couldn’t win anything last season defending like that even though we had the best strike force in world football. This year we’ve got Mario fucking Balotelli up front, so it’s even more vital we tighten up at the back, yet we’ve somehow become even more leaky.

 

The league table looks surprisingly ok, but it doesn’t reflect where we’re at. It’s a totally false position but it’s some crumb of comfort to cling to I guess. To have played as consistently poorly as we have yet be level on points with the side in fourth is almost impossible to fathom. We should be grateful for that but unless we get our act together quickly we won’t be there for long.

 

What can we do though? Not a great deal as this is just about the best team we can put out. Sterling simply has to play up front as he’s the only real threat we have in behind until sick note comes back. The likes of Lallana and Coutinho can provide creativity in behind, and maybe Lambert would look better if he had Sterling playing off him and Lallana in behind?

 

As for the defence, it really doesn’t matter who plays back there as the issues we have are no longer about personnel, it goes much deeper than that and changing the players is just moving the deck chairs round on the Titanic. I keep hearing people worrying about what Madrid will do to us. I’m not even concerned with that, those games often take care of themselves just because of the European night atmosphere and players raising their game. To be honest, I’m far more worried about what Hull will do to us.

 

 

Team: Mignolet; Johnson, Lovren, Skrtel, Enrique; Can (Allen), Henderson, Lallana (Coutinho), Gerrard; Sterling (Toure), Balotelli:


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That's a fantastic report Dave - it encapsulates perfectly the anger and frustration I felt after the game.  I don't think I've ever been so angry after a win.  We are looking miles away from finishing top 4 at the moment, and the complete lack of cohesion from front to back is a worry, as this is definitely a regression.  

 

As you say, the whoever is coaching the defence needs to be sacked, or if it is Brendan, he needs to take a large gulp from the cup of humility and bring in someone who can drill a decent performance into  what are, by consensus, pretty decent players.  

 

Other concerns I have, as well as the obvious attacking crisis, are associated with the team's organisation and approach.  We seem to have abandoned the high intensity game used so effectively last year, and the uncertainty and lack of belief is having a massive effect on some of our players - Henderson is a shadow of the player he was last season, and Gerrard looks as though he has had the spirit knocked out of him once too many times.  

 

The example you mentioned where Traore kept the ball in the air three times in our penalty area was unbelievable - I was roaring at the TV so loud that the neighbour mentioned it later.  Diabolical, and if it was any other team we'd be laughing our head off at the ineptitude on display.

 

The dogged and mindless insistence in playing out from the back when it is clear that Skrtel, Enrique and Lovren are unhappy receiving the ball in those positions, and are glacial in their assessment of the options around them, meant that we continually looked nervous and susceptible to the high press from QPR, which inevitably meant we would lose possession cheaply.   In fact, it reminded me of the worst days of Houllier and Benitez, when it was clear the players were following a drill regardless of whether it was the best thing to do at the time, usually to the detriment of the team.  

 

I'll stop ranting, but again well done on a great piece.  

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Great report Dave, as usual ! I agree about sterling, he has to play upfront, and then put Gerard at the back he will bring the leadership we need there, then you play hendo, Allen and lalanna in midfield

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It was a weird one that game, I was in total dismay at the final whistle, even though we won. Beat Hull convincingly and all will be forgotten. But its clear we have deeper problems and we literally are the complete opposite of last years team, with a slightly worse defence. It could go either way in the next 3 weeks.

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But, but, Dave we won?

 

As bad as we were defensively, you make your own luck going forward and the own goals were a direct result of swift thinking and sharp attacking play.

 

We won, lets enjoy it, shake out that guilt, we won.

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I think the defensive mistakes were individual. Gerrard getting involved with Vargas and not paying attention to the ball was highlighted on MNF, Enrique diving in when it was totally unnecessary and then not tracking the run. We really need some dominant characters in there, but we seem to be looking to Sterling for inspiration. 

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The strange thing is that Swansea under Rogders looked well dressed defensively. Now we look absolutely clueless... As you say, it's nit the personel . Skrtel, Lovren and Sakho all look very good for their national team. We could really do with a Mascherano in this side. Also with Suarez up front, opposition defences were harassed from the 1st minute to the last, meaning we won the ball often in dangerous areas. Borini is the player we have up front that work hardest. Mario is Mario, and Lambert doesnt have the legs to do it. So in my opinion we may just as well give Fabio a chance, cos he has been just as good as both Mario and Rickie the few minutes he's played.

 

When you struggle t least you need to fight, but against QPR they wanted it more... They won every 50/50 duel, and that was frightening to observe.

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'What makes it worse is that the man he (Balotelli) has replaced was probably the most alert, streetwise, cunning player on the planet who lives for that kind of moment. Suarez anticipated things five seconds before they happened. Sometimes Mario isn’t even aware of them five seconds after they’ve happened.'

 

Did laugh. 

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Great report as usual Dave.  I like Balotelli, always have done and think he could still come good for us.  I am also not concerned with his overall effort, especially with tracking back and closing down the opposition.

 

That being said I was furious with him on Sunday, for me the worst was when Sterling got the ball on the inside left position then played a straight ball into the box.  Any striker with an ounce of football brain would have anticipated that and started to move before the pass was made but Mario was caught on his heels again and simply shrugged his shoulders when Sterling questioned him.

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Just to sum up then - Brendan! Its the defence Brendan!! The d-e-f-e-n-c-e! THE DEFENCE NEEDS SORTING BRENDAN!! Pronto!!!!!!!!

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Just to sum up then - Brendan! Its the defence Brendan!! The d-e-f-e-n-c-e! THE DEFENCE NEEDS SORTING BRENDAN!! Pronto!!!!!!!!

 

Then please look at the midfield and the attack Brendan.  

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Hull will beat us won't they.  Nothing surer.

 

 

Steve Bruce and his BFH.  Smirking.  Aaaargh!

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Click the photo!

 

Steve-Bruce-014.jpg

 

 

Has he got some sort of rare syndrome or something?

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When you struggle t least you need to fight, but against QPR they wanted it more... They won every 50/50 duel, and that was frightening to observe.

That was the stand out feature for me.

Anyone can play shit, even great teams play shit sometimes, but we didn't compete at all anywhere on the pitch in the first half. We improved to reach the dizzy heights of mediocrity generally speaking in the 2nd half but even then, the individual mistakes were still as bad as ever.

It's often said after a disappointing draw, the derby being the most recent example, that it felt like a defeat. This must have been first time ever people were saying it felt like a defeat after a victory, so awful was the performance.

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I don't think Rodgers will bring in anyone to help him coach the defense. I do hold him responsible and the defense has gotten steadily worse under his tenure. We have good defenders, not world class but several players good enough to play for their country and certainly better than what most PL teams can field. Its obvious they are pretty much left on their own every game and that they have no confidence in themselves or their keeper.

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I don't think Rodgers will bring in anyone to help him coach the defense. I do hold him responsible and the defense has gotten steadily worse under his tenure. We have good defenders, not world class but several players good enough to play for their country and certainly better than what most PL teams can field. Its obvious they are pretty much left on their own every game and that they have no confidence in themselves or their keeper.

 

sadly, I don't think they're being left on their own.  i think they are being asked to play in a way that they find difficult to adjust to, or that is just not effective.  

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