Rodgers: We'll keep attacking

[TheBitch]

 

We have a chance to win the league this year. If going for that means getting a bit more defensive consciousness into the side then we should do it, no?

 

Attack and defend are not mutually exclusive concepts.

I don't think now is the time to change what has put us in the position we're in.

[Xherdan]

Danny Mills is some thick cunt.

[easytoslip]

Rodgers is doing a great job but it's a bit more than a little instability in defence, and yes it's too late to change things. It is good to be in contention. as opposed to previous campaigns and he should get together a decent out fit , though this one is good, in the end. I just think if things could have been a little better we would be holding on to the top spot , onwards and upwards it's all looking that way.

[Guest Numero Veinticinco]

Danny Mills is some thick cunt.

 

 

What did he say that's wrong?

[SlugTrail]

Danny Mills is some thick cunt.

this is what makes TLW special and unique, 1 and a half pages if talking about our attacking prowess and defensive vulnerability and then a pearler like this. Sir i salute you.

[billypilgrimnz]

I think he's totally correct. We're rarely conceding because of the attacking play. We're conceding because we've got players who are vulnerable against certain things. That doesn't mean they're bad players, just that some of them are wrong for how we're playing. Put in different players with strengths in the areas we need and we'll be much tighter using the same system. 

 

Totally correct? Like, 100%. There is nothing about the way he sets up a team that ever has any flaws? Interesting.

[Guest Numero Veinticinco]

Totally correct? Like, 100%. There is nothing about the way he sets up a team that ever has any flaws? Interesting.

What? I said, in reply to the massive post where he said things I 100% agreed with, that he was totally correct. Things like 'Up to now we've got away with it. But at times we concede poor goals - it is mistakes or decision making that's costing us.' Yes, I totally agree with that and what he said there.

[RazorBack]

Read some different views on here and can agree with both sides - we're doing good and it's fun, not Barca fun, but true, kids fun and the players seems to be enjoying the game which is really important. But on the other hand, we're making ourselves nervous and hoping not to concede when the goal is in the air. I'm more worried about how we let them attack us and create chances, than the goals itself because the first one was poor covering and great shooting from Jonjo, the second one was probably the same and again with a freakish OG (how many OGs did we score this season?) and the third, I'll leave that one for everyone to decide themselves.. But what do you guys think it's wrong? What don't you like in Agger? I'm not having a go, just maybe to widen my horizons.. And who would you bring in to strengthen our defence and it's a realistic target?

[billypilgrimnz]

What? I said, in reply to the massive post where he said things I 100% agreed with, that he was totally correct. Things like 'Up to now we've got away with it. But at times we concede poor goals - it is mistakes or decision making that's costing us.' Yes, I totally agree with that and what he said there.

 

Rodgers said in another interview, and what I was referring to:

 

 

[Rodgers] said: "I'm not overly happy with our defending today, to be honest. It's not coaching; some of the things that we have conceded goals in, you can't coach that.

 

"There's a feeling when you're in the game of how to defend. You have to use that experience to be able to defend properly. I've always said that since I've been here. Today we had moments in the game that we weren't so good at.

 

"But we conceded poor goals. It isn't so much structurally. It's just mistakes or decision-making that costs us. There's absolutely no doubt we'll continue to work on that side of it.

 

"The balance in our training is very much equal in relation to our pressing, our defensive mentality and also our offensive side. Today our offensive side was very, very good. It's got us the points.

 

 

and you replied to me:

 

I think he's totally correct. We're rarely conceding because of the attacking play. We're conceding because we've got players who are vulnerable against certain things. That doesn't mean they're bad players, just that some of them are wrong for how we're playing. Put in different players with strengths in the areas we need and we'll be much tighter using the same system. 

 

You're both wrong, but that's okay. It happens.

[Faustus]

With the stick our defence has been getting since the match yesterday, would anyone be surprised if we ground out a 1-0 win against Southampton on Saturday?

 

Stranger things have happened.

[JBarnes]

Any news on the return of Sakho, Lucas and Enrique? The first two particularly would help our chances immeasurably. Skrtel and Dagger are just not cut out for the way we play.

[Section_31]

[RedRazor]

Read some different views on here and can agree with both sides - we're doing good and it's fun, not Barca fun, but true, kids fun and the players seems to be enjoying the game which is really important. But on the other hand, we're making ourselves nervous and hoping not to concede when the goal is in the air. I'm more worried about how we let them attack us and create chances, than the goals itself because the first one was poor covering and great shooting from Jonjo, the second one was probably the same and again with a freakish OG (how many OGs did we score this season?) and the third, I'll leave that one for everyone to decide themselves.. But what do you guys think it's wrong? What don't you like in Agger? I'm not having a go, just maybe to widen my horizons.. And who would you bring in to strengthen our defence and it's a realistic target?

Good post mate.

 

I like Ming, Agger, Skrtel, Toure, Johnson and Flannagan so I am not going to slag off any of them.

 

My view is that it is nervousness that has crept into their game. I think BR has changed the way we try to play the ball out of defence since Gerrard dropped back. Now when we get the ball the two centre backs push wide apart - much wider apart than you would expect two central cefenders to be in a normal back four (and much wider than when Kucas was in the holding role). Gerrard then occupies the space in between them which allows the backs to push up further. So, for a brief moment, we are playing three across the back and then look to develop an attack. Great when it works but if it breaks down all of our back four are not in a great position. What then appears to happen is wholesale panic while we try to recover. And that is when a lot of the mistakes come.

 

So I think it is just a bedding in process. We need to give it time and let the players get used to it before we start thinking about changes to personnel.

 

The other point is that we have conceded 35 goals but we were never going to keep 38 clean sheets so what is an acceptable number of goals conceded? Chelsea are on 21 while City and Arsenal are on 27. Having seen the montage of our cockups on MOTD on Sunday night the difference would appear to be silly goals given away - not a fundamental problem with the way we play.

[Iceman]

[Phoenix]

Any news on the return of Sakho, Lucas and Enrique? The first two particularly would help our chances immeasurably. Skrtel and Dagger are just not cut out for the way we play.

 

Enrique is unlikely to be this season. The other two will be ready for the next match (maybe not match fitness)

[s(k)aturation]

 

WHAT DO MEAN, "GRAMPY RABBIT APPROACHING"?

[Jhinge Machha]

amazing that we started this season grinding out three 1-0 wins

[Jose Jones]

amazing that we started this season grinding out three 1-0 wins

 

Might be down to the fact we only played one striker.

When both Suarez and Sturridge are in the team we've conceded 1.57 goals / game.

When just one of them has played we've conceded 1 goal a game exactly.

 

On the other hand:

We've scored exactly 3 goals a game when both play, and only 2.15 goals a game when just one of them does.

 

We've basically won the same amount of games when we've played with just one striker or with both, but despite the defence being more solid have lost 4 and drawn 1 with one striker compared with drawn 4 and lost 1 when both have played.

[s(k)aturation]

So, we're three points better off attacking.

There's the probable answer to how we should approach the rest of this season.

 

My goodness, it would be one of the most exciting titles wins ever, wouldn't it?

[Jose Jones]

So, we're three points better off attacking.

There's the probable answer to how we should approach the rest of this season.

 

My goodness, it would be one of the most exciting titles wins ever, wouldn't it?

 

Yeah, bit better off.

I think we're bound to drop points in the run-in, and we could still get scuppered by an injury or two and our lack of depth.  However just going off our results this season leaves things enticingly uncertain really.

Our home form has been pretty shit hot, won 12, drawn 1 lost 1, whereas our away form has been dodgy.  But we have also played almost all the other top teams away - Man City, Chelsea and Arsenal being 3 of our defeats.

 

Is it the fact that we're just a bit shit away, or is it that we struggle against the top teams?  

 

If you squint you might be able to suggest that we should still win away against the majority mid to lower table teams we have left, plus being at home might help us improve our results against the top teams...

[Guest Numero Veinticinco]

Rodgers said in another interview, and what I was referring to:

 

 

and you replied to me:

 

 

You're both wrong, but that's okay. It happens.

It does happen, but declarations with out explanations don't make it so. I find it difficult to believe anybody can look at the goals we've conceded and think it is structural rather than mistakes by individuals. I find it difficult to believe because just looking at those goals shows the individual error quite clearly. But hey, if you say we are wrong, we're wrong.

[Jose Jones]

It does happen, but declarations with out explanations don't make it so. I find it difficult to believe anybody can look at the goals we've conceded and think it is structural rather than mistakes by individuals. I find it difficult to believe because just looking at those goals shows the individual error quite clearly. But hey, if you say we are wrong, we're wrong.

 

I guess teh point about structure is that if you have a more midfielders and defenders back then mistakes are more easily rectified.  A team mate is more likely to cover than if the defence is spread out.  Also if the midfield sits in to protect the defence then less balls are getting played in, which means less chance for defenders to make cock ups.

 

There is certainly a bit of truth in that for me, however to do that would generally mean you make the trade off in scoring less goals.

 

But really I agree with you and Rodgers in that our balance isn't really too out of whack and it is mostly too many individual errors.  Primarily down to never being able to play a settled defence.  

[Guest Numero Veinticinco]

Yeah, I pretty much agree Jose. I think you can concede less goals by playing more defenders and midfielders. 8 at the back seems to work quite well! I don't think it rectifies the mistakes, though. My point is that the goals we've conceded have, overwhelmingly, been errors. So yeah, we definitely agree about the balance thing. For me, and seemingly anybody who watches the goals we've conceded, it's about not having the personnel to offer the type of attributes we need. If we can cut down on the crosses we let in, which will take new players in my opinion because you're not going to get Johnson doing it or Lucas tracking a quick winger and putting in a last ditch tackle to stop the cross, and also CBs who can mark players and deal with balls into the box, then that's great start. We'd concede much less often.

[Moo]

Yeah, I pretty much agree Jose. I think you can concede less goals by playing more defenders and midfielders. 8 at the back seems to work quite well! I don't think it rectifies the mistakes, though. My point is that the goals we've conceded have, overwhelmingly, been errors. So yeah, we definitely agree about the balance thing. For me, and seemingly anybody who watches the goals we've conceded, it's about not having the personnel to offer the type of attributes we need. If we can cut down on the crosses we let in, which will take new players in my opinion because you're not going to get Johnson doing it or Lucas tracking a quick winger and putting in a last ditch tackle to stop the cross, and also CBs who can mark players and deal with balls into the box, then that's great start. We'd concede much less often.

You're second point about marking can, and absolutely should be, coached. I'm hesitant to apportion blame due to the defensive injuries we've had but if we need to concentrate on it more in training then that's what we should do.

[Guest Numero Veinticinco]

If training could fix it, it'd be fixed already. Don't you think that somebody might have told Skrtel or Agger, both experienced 29 year olds who Captain their country, that they should work on these things? If it was a matter of training, the question is why have several top managers and coaching staff failed to work on it?

 

It is the player's awareness and ability, not their training. They have strengths in other areas, but not the ones that keep letting us down.