Nikrunner
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That was a great match. Shame to lose the tie, but we were brilliant tonight. Proud to be a fan, and the future is looking brighter all the time. We've been playing some really good football this season, but we've got a bit more to do before we can turn the corner and be successful again. I'm confident that we have the leadership and personnel in place to get there. I can understand the criticism of Rodgers for the double substitution. I am a Rodgers supporter, but I agree that the timing was risky. It was clear that Allen would be coming off; he was not closing down as quickly and gave the ball away three times in about five minutes prior to the sub. He was quite rightly spent after an hour where he played at a higher tempo than just about everyone on the pitch. I would have preferred to see Henderson move in for Allen with Assaidi coming on for the wing. Shelvey is just not there yet, both technically and, most importantly, mentally. It's almost an inevitability that he gets carded if he plays, and the replays of the foul on Hulk showed the type of recklessness for which other refs would have given red. I have faith that Rodgers' will learn the lessons from tonight, as he has done throughout the season. We can't fault the manager for mistakes the players make. Shelvey should have scored tonight. Don't need to to go into Carragher. Collectively, the team and club will move onwards and upwards. I hope Shelvey is a part of that, but he's got some maturing and hard work to do. If we play like this for the rest of the season, we will end up in a position to experience more European football next year. Keep your heads up, lads.
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I thought we looked good tonight with one holding midfielder and two box-to-box midfielders either side of him. Realistically, this is about as much as can be expected. I'm not sure there are any defensive midfielders that can do what you are suggesting be done in the Premier League, especially against the top teams and with the system of two wide front men that we play. We dominated the midfield tonight. I think Lucas should have a limited role, and that is to take out the most dangerous area of the pitch in front of the back four and be the relief/swing man on attacks. What we saw tonight was exactly what Rodgers suggested we would see once Lucas came back. One mistake I think Rodgers has made is that he seemed to value Shelvey more than Henderson. Henderson offers more defensively than Shelvey does, and this allows us to see the more forward thinking Gerrard that has been restricted in the first half of the season. It looks like a Lucas, Allen, and Gerrard base with Shelvey and Henderson rotating in for the future.
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They are much more physically imposing than we are. The problem is, they are good and we're going to have to raise our game. Some players are doing this, but other are having their abilities revealed. Shelvey has looked very out of place... his movement, control, and passing have all been poor. Be better off with Gerrard in his position and someone else, Henderson or Allen, playing where Gerrard is playing.
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I thought Suso did well coming on for Sahin, but it was mainly because he was finding the holes that Gerrard wasn't. Gerrard took Sahin's position and Suso took Gerrard's. Gerrard should be playing deeper for us, as he did in the 2nd half.
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He plays for Liverpool Football club as the lone striker. He should score our goals.
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Brad Jones' delivery is not Premier League standard. He is far too slow. Miss Reina's delivery which is perhaps the best in the world.
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Would love (cynically) a video of all the times Saurez has lost us the ball in the final third by trying to turn a man when he had safer and better options available to him. Yes, he got the easy tap in, but he ended nearly all of our attacks today with stupid decisions.
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Goal was all credit to Widsom. 1) How on earth can a professional footballer concede a foul throw? 2) Why is he marking the center forward instead of his man?
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I thought he was out the door to West Ham, but then he got injured.
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Disappointed with what some are saying about Gerrard. He was playing a deeper role today and I thought our midfield controlled the game. Some of his passing was insightful. He wasn't "dire" as some are allowing themselves to believe. The biggest problem I saw was how easily we gave the ball away in the final third. Shelvey was particularly guilty, but did make amends with some efforts on goal. I feel we need to slow things up sometimes in their half. We seem in a rush to get to goal, and we find ourselves lacking options once we do get up there. Borini is a bit of headless chicken at the moment. He needs to played more centrally, as only goals will settle him down. He's not going to get too many chances doing what he is doing at the moment. Suarez, as Waddle mentioned, was a waste on the left. It wasn't until he played more centrally that he came alive for us. The problem with him playing off of the main striker is that he tends to give the ball away. What annoys me further is he is quick to blame his teammates for his mistakes. Wouldn't be surprised to see him make way to fund a decent striker in January, as the constant booing he is receiving would tempt anyone out of the door. Overall, a positive performance, and we deserved more than a point. I think if we can give a couple more youngsters a chance (Amoo and Yesil) we might make it to January with a decent chance of attracting a striker to replace Suarez and perhaps make a surge for the European places. We're already a long way behind, but I think the competition is more evenly spread in the league this year, meaning a good run in winter could really jump us up the league and set us up nicely for next season.
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Man of the match - Game 3 - West Bromwich Albion - Away - PL
Nikrunner replied to Morse's topic in FF - Football Forum
Allen Reina Johnson -
Gerrard and Suarez were particularly poor. Suarez looked inventive, but he is our finisher, and poorer finishing you will not see in the premier league. Gerrard gave the ball away far too often. Borini gave the ball away far too often. Downing gave the ball away on one vs. one situations every time. The game was 50/50 until the penalty, and it was all downhill from there. Far too early to judge a system, but it is fair to judge Rodger's response. Surely you do not respond by bring on Carragher? Switch to three centre-backs and add a midfielder. After being 50/50, more of the same was only going to bring the inevitable. We needed a bolder decision there.
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Code, the problem is with your question. Why is it that there has to be a choice between finishing fourth or winning the League Cup, going to the Final, and finishing 8th. The point is that we shouldn't finish 8th. It's where the line is drawn. Why can't we finish 4th AND do well in cup competitions? It's just like any other job, you can do well in some areas, but if you absolutely fail in one crucial area, you're gone.
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Downing hit the woodwork 5 times in the league last season. Even if he plays the same as he did last year, it's highly unlikely that he will be as unlucky.
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A player like... Bellamy. It's a shame he can't hang around for another year, but perhaps a more suitable replacement will arrive. I agree, though. I think Downing will still start many games because of his versatility and Premier League experience helping out with rotation and injuries. I am concerned with our depth, as most of the players that did not start today have either yet to fully prove themselves at this level or are making the step up from the youths. I think it will be a project that takes a few seasons. It has been a great couple of days to be a Liverpool fan with the Suarez extension and the first real glimpse of what a full-strength team might look like this season. I also think if Downing can have a couple more performances that yield goals and assists, the pressure and negative attention might lift from his shoulders and we could have what amounts to a new signing on our hands. Joe Cole, should he stay, is also a decent option from the bench. Carroll also coming on in the right games... I don't think things are any way near as bad as many on here seem to believe.