14/15 Liverpool FC Thread - Luis who?

[Crimey]

First topic message reminder :

Considering how fantastic last year was, this season will be a lot less fun but with a lot less heartbreak at the end.

[Guest]

Not to confident with us beating anyone at the moment.

Shame on you

[westisbest]

We cant score a damn goal Dave.
In fairness we played well saturday, especially second half.

If we can continue to play like that for the rest of the season I'm sue we will find the net and pick up the points we need.

[Guest]

The return of Sturridge will hopefully sort that out. The chance Sterling chipped into Guzan's hands is something Sturridge would have buried with no problem.

We'll probably need the teams above us to start drawing the games they play against one another and we may just have a chance of top four. Times marching on though before our fate is taken out of our own hands

[hampo17]

Dave why are talking to West like he's a Liverpool fan? I can understand why he isn't confident of Villa beating anyone, they've only scored 11 goals all season.

[Crimey]

I didn't think he would, but Rodgers has definitely turned things around. Disappointed to be knocked out of the Europa League as I felt it was a winnable competition, but do believe that it was either challenge for top four or challenge for Europa League, it just wasn't going to happen in both. 

The 3-4-3 formation has worked fantastically, allowing Coutinho and Lallana to thrive, giving Can a settled place in the team where he has looked brilliant and given Markovic, Moreno and Ibe a chance to reinvent themselves as wing-backs, improving their all-round game as a result.

If Sturridge can get back into form, I think he's been poor since he's been back, as well as Gerrard giving it his all in his final few months, think top four finish and FA Cup win is definitely possible and in my eyes would go down as a good season, especially after the genuinely awful few months at the beginning of the season.

Glad that players like Henderson, Coutinho and Can are stepping up their game. Even unreliable players like Mignolet, Sakho and Allen have started to offer something as well as Balotelli chipping in a couple of goals.

Hopefully this momentum can continue into next season with a strong start, minimum dealings in the summer should help with that. Gerrard is leaving, you'd expect Johnson, Enrique, Lambert and Borini to leave as well, possibly Kolo Toure retiring and Balotelli being sold. With a lot of young players already in the first team and some talents being talked about from the youth squad, thinking another forward (better choice than Balotelli this time please) and maybe experienced defensive cover in the mould of Toure and a central midfielder (Pjanic is strongly rumoured and would be great) would constitute good dealings.

[LivinginItaly]

I'm quietly very excited about our future given the number of young talents we currently have in and around the first team. The summer dealings will be very important for us both in terms of keeping our best young players and in buying wisely to add the necessary experience and strengthen the obvious weaknesses within the squad. Sterling gets most of the media attention, however, i don't think he is our best young talent. Who do you rate as our best young player both in terms of current ability and potential?

[Crimey]

I actually think it's Emre Can, he's fast becoming one of my favourite players and I think the experience he is gaining playing in a back three with all that space in front of him will bode really well for his future in midfield. He's so strong, but with great pace and a real ability to pick out a pass.

[hampo17]

Jordan Ibe will be a huge player next season for us in my opinion. Already shown the year that he has the confidence to go past players, and is adapting really well at right back. I actually think he has more ability than Sterling and it'll show in the coming years.

Expect Harry Wilson and Jerome Sinclair to be pushing for first team sports in the next 18 months as well.

[LivinginItaly]

For me it is the little Brazilian magician who has become such a key player for us, was genuinely surprised to hear this week he is still only 22. Agree also with Can who i can see being a real quality centre-mid next season if we manage to strengthen the defensive positions.

[Crimey]

I'm holding out on saying Coutinho until he proves he can do it consistently, he was below par for the first half of the season (not the only player to be fair) and whilst he has been fantastic recently, I want to see him prove he can do it across a season. 

I agree about Can, I want to see him stay in defence unless somebody can be found who can do what he does as well as he does. He'd be great in midfield I'm sure, but he's needed in defence more. His runs from deep as well as his playmaking ability and defensive intelligence are perfect for that three man defence.

[Guest]

All the talk of Sterling to Real Madrid seems to have died down of late but I can see talk of Coutinho to Real Madrid gaining momentum especially if he continues in this form.

Whilst not one of the hysterical "Rodgers out" brigade, I was definitely concerned by his seeming refusal to address the defensive woes earlier this season, however, it would seems that he's found the solution to the problem and opened up a few other avenues as a result. Doubt he'll get any credit for it from the maysayers as he does seem to get far more stick that any other manager in his position which I find bizarre.

Just a shame we couldn't have used this formation in the CL...but maybe next season eh?

[Crimey]

I'm expecting he'll drop the formation next year, same as he did with the diamond. I think he's set on trying to make 4-2-3-1 work and this is just the best option for now. 

I'd rather he stuck with the 3-4-3, it makes us more solid defensively, better going forward and most importantly IMO, makes the opposition change their tactics, it's hard for them to continue playing their normal style when coming up against such an unusual formation.

[Crimey]

Reportedly set to sign Sergi Samper from Barcelona. Don't know much about him other than that he's a defensive midfielder in the mould of somebody like Busquets so you can understand why Rodgers would pick him. 20 years old. Only downside is the usual with signing an ex-Barca prospect is that in 3-4 years if he gets any good, he'll end moving back.

[hampo17]

Reportedly set to sign Sergi Samper from Barcelona. Don't know much about him other than that he's a defensive midfielder in the mould of somebody like Busquets so you can understand why Rodgers would pick him. 20 years old. Only downside is the usual with signing an ex-Barca prospect is that in 3-4 years if he gets any good, he'll end moving back.

Haven't seen much of him but I know he is very highly thought of in Spain.

[Crimey]

So what next?

I think the owners will definitely be considering Brendan Rodgers' position this summer. He's gone three years now without a trophy, we're in only a slightly better position than we had been before he arrived. Last season was fantastic but it would be wrong to allow Rodgers to live off of that achievement for too long. I think the FA Cup definitely would have helped him, because it would have been a morale-boosting trophy in the cabinet, but in reality we scrapped our way to the semi-final and didn't deserve to get to the final. 

I don't think he should be sacked, but there are definitely still really big question marks about him. He hasn't grown a lot as a manager since he arrived here, he dropped the possession-oriented game but still hasn't sorted out the defence, still insists that players who aren't that comfortable with it have to play out of the back. He's awful at substitutions, he rarely uses all three and even more rarely makes a game-changing one and sometimes the choices are baffling, such as bringing defenders on whilst losing, using players he had left out in the cold for a long time or simply waiting far too late.

This year he managed to get the team going again, but the first half of the season was awful and I think the questions about his future were totally valid. I think the second half of the season and the run of good form will ultimately save him but I think he has to have a much better season next year. He will need to get top four and a trophy would also be good, but with Europa League as well I just can't see it happening. The availability of Jurgen Klopp or even Rafael Benitez will definitely increase the pressure.

As for the players Gerrard is really going out with a whimper which is a shame but I still think his presence will be missed, especially as the media's go-to story next year is 'are Liverpool missing Gerrard?'. I think simply as a central midfielder he'll need a replacement and this buy will have to be very, very careful because the pressure of being Gerrard's replacement could be huge.

Glen Johnson still hasn't signed a new contract so I expect he'll be off, rumours that Martin Skrtel will be gone as well because he's only got one year left, I think that won't happen and Rodgers would be stupid to let him go considering he's by far the best defender at the club. I'm expecting Jose Enrique will leave, Rodgers will likely try and sell Borini again. The big one for me is Balotelli must go. If there is any interest, he has to be sold, he's on too high of a wages and is too much of a liability to stay for me. He's clearly stopped trying and Rodgers is obviously just not a fan so he has to be sold. Ricky Lambert will probably leave as well.

Then we've got the issues with Sterling and perhaps even more worrying Henderson. I don't think Sterling will be sold this summer, John W Henry doesn't normally allow himself to get bullied in the market but unless he signs a new contract the talk will keep going. Henderson I'm sure will sign a contract, but I don't want the club to mess up and lose him because he's a fantastic talent and should be captain, I think it would be a mistake to give it to somebody else now. 

As far for who's brought in. Origi is on his way, but not sure how much of a role he'll play, he's done okay for Lille this year but he's certainly not going to save the side. With Lambert, Borini and hopefully Balotelli gone and Sturridge still injury prone it seems a striker is a must again. Seems we are always in the market for one. Not sure who we'll go for here. Benteke would be a good idea I think but will likely be expensive. Dzeko is a possibility. I'd like to see Pjanic but rumours that both Manchester United and Manchester City are interested which will probably stop us getting anywhere near him. Other than that I'm simply not sure. If we can get James Milner, he'd be a great squad man who can fill in multiple roles. 

Hopefully we can do a late push for top four, would require a couple of slip ups from Manchester City and some big results from us, but it's still possible and hopefully now the FA Cup is out of the equation the players will be focused on that and determined to make it.

[hampo17]

If, and it's a big if we had the chance to bring Rafa back I would jump at the chance.

[Good Golly I'm Olly]

Do you reckon the board would really want to give Rodgers more money to spend given his very poor track record so far?

Think they may look at bringing in a director of football type personally

[Crimey]

Do you reckon the board would really want to give Rodgers more money to spend given his very poor track record so far?

Think they may look at bringing in a director of football type personally

He doesn't have a big say in the transfer policy anyway. 

There is practically the same thing as a director of football already in place, it's a transfer committee made up of lots people, including Brendan Rodgers. 

He also refused the idea of a director of football when he first arrived when it was going to be Louis Van Gaal.

[Rowley]

As someone who is not a Liverpool fan I think what should be a worry to the owners is how frequently Liverpool do not turn up in the games that really matter, showed it the other week against Man Utd when a win would have made the top four a realistic expectation and yesterday when an FA Cup final was at stake. Does raise legitimate questions around the temperament of the team and Rogers’ ability to get them up for big games. Personally I am not convinced with Rogers, I think last season flattered them, they were still very poor in a lot of areas last season, but the sheer volume of goals provided by Suarez and Sturridge papered over a lot of cracks. Mignolet was, and remains a poor keeper and defensively they conceded way too many.

You never know in modern clubs how much involvement in transfers a manager has but a lot of money has been spent badly over the last couple of years. Lambert has been poor, Ballotelli an absolute disaster and thus far Lallana and Lovren have not looked anywhere near £20m + players. Not sure, as the owners, I would be overly keen to make significant funds available to the current structure, particularly when funds have to be found for the Anfield renovation. Personally don’t think they will sack Rogers, but believe next season will be key for him and not sure he can afford a slow start.

[Guest]

Coming from someone whose club is owned by Randy Lerner (guess he watched the game on SKYPE), I'd be inclined to keep my counsel over that subject. However....

Arguably we should have done Chelsea in the Capital One Cup semi finals but the losses to Arsenal and Man Utd seem to have overshadowed the good stuff we did prior to that. Had those losses come in the middle of the season, nothing would have been made of it...no-one seems to remember Utd losing 5-2 to Leicester now or 4-0 to MK Dons...but with the season drawing to a close, all poor results are being magnified.

Yesterday there seemed to be a lack of guile and/or creativity in the team coupled with a lack of mobility up front. Not happy with Sterling down the left, thinks that's Coutinho's best position and Sterling either has to be at the right or playing through the centre behind the striker. Lallana, when fit, has the ability to pick holes in a defence but without anyone up front to stick the ball in the back of the net it seems a moot point. Still think we need a midfield giant to dominate games. Maybe when Flanagan is fit they'll move Can back into midfield when he can make his size count although at the moment he still appears a little naïve. He gets brushed off the ball to easily at times and he's prone to far too many rash decisions.

Anyway, losing Sturridge for so many games has done for us as much as the defensive woes and whilst there's a glimmer of hope for top four, I won't be getting carried away because...next season will be our season (or maybe the one after that)

[Rowley]

Coming from someone whose club is owned by Randy Lerner (guess he watched the game on SKYPE), I'd be inclined to keep my counsel over that subject. However....

At a loss as to how that relates to anything I posted, but ces't la vie. Will not let it diminish the joy I feel at the minute.

[Lowlandbrit]

He also refused the idea of a director of football when he first arrived when it was going to be Louis Van Gaal.

To be fair, that sounds like a terrible, terrible idea. I get why those kinds of names pop up, but you really need someone that wouldn't rather be in the dugout themself.

[Guest]

Coming from someone whose club is owned by Randy Lerner (guess he watched the game on SKYPE), I'd be inclined to keep my counsel over that subject. However....

At a loss as to how that relates to anything I posted, but ces't la vie. Will not let it diminish the joy I feel at the minute.

You're talking about our owners not turning up to games...yet yours was nowhere to be seen either but somehow it's symptomatic of LFC's woes apparently. Like I said elsewhere, you deserved the win yesterday but I don't correlate our poor performance* with the absence of the boss

*Unfair to blame yesterday's defeat on us when Villa played us off the pitch though

[Crimey]

Coming from someone whose club is owned by Randy Lerner (guess he watched the game on SKYPE), I'd be inclined to keep my counsel over that subject. However....

At a loss as to how that relates to anything I posted, but ces't la vie. Will not let it diminish the joy I feel at the minute.

You're talking about our owners not turning up to games...yet yours was nowhere to be seen either but somehow it's symptomatic of LFC's woes apparently. Like I said elsewhere, you deserved the win yesterday but I don't correlate our poor performance* with the absence of the boss

*Unfair to blame yesterday's defeat on us when Villa played us off the pitch though

He didn't, he said it should be a worry for the owners that the Liverpool team don't turn up to big games, as in don't play well when it matters.

[Guest]

Coming from someone whose club is owned by Randy Lerner (guess he watched the game on SKYPE), I'd be inclined to keep my counsel over that subject. However....

At a loss as to how that relates to anything I posted, but ces't la vie. Will not let it diminish the joy I feel at the minute.

You're talking about our owners not turning up to games...yet yours was nowhere to be seen either but somehow it's symptomatic of LFC's woes apparently. Like I said elsewhere, you deserved the win yesterday but I don't correlate our poor performance* with the absence of the boss

*Unfair to blame yesterday's defeat on us when Villa played us off the pitch though

He didn't, he said it should be a worry for the owners that the Liverpool team don't turn up to big games, as in don't play well when it matters.

FFS I can't be expected to read ALL the words in posts can I?

Apologies to all concerned...in particular the English language...is it home time yet?

As for the team turning up when it matters...NEWSFLASH...all the f*cking games should matter!!!!!!

[Steffan]

Contact Anfield now to book next years seasons tickets at:

0800 1 0 1 0 1 0

That's oh eight hundred won nothing won nothing won and won nothing AGAIN

[hampo17]

A Welshman joking about a football team winning nothing.

[Steffan]

A Welshman joking about a football team winning nothing

Coming from a guy who can't make up his mind whether he supports Wrexham or Liverpool football club...

[hampo17]

Follow both Steffan. Is that hard to understand? Want me to go in to the family reasons as well, or would you prefer to just bugger off.

[Rowley]

Lets not argue kids, you are in danger of removing the grin that has been permanently glued on my face since around 5pm yesterday.

[Steffan]

Want me to go in to the family reasons as well, or would you prefer to just bugger off

You're the one who tried to antogonise me yet I'm the one who is supposed to 'bugger off'

Lets not argue kids, you are in danger of removing the grin that has been permanently glued on my face since around 5pm yesterday

I agree Jeff. Let's not argue (although Mondays are usually the best day for it )

I am also smiling though. All the south Walian Liverpool armchair glory supporters have gone very quiet on my social media

It's bliss

[Guest]

Aye let's not spoil Rowley's day, moderating on here he had precious little to smile about at the best of times

[Soldier_Of_Fortune]

There musnt have been many sheep around the Valleys yesterday.

[Steffan]

There musnt have been many sheep around the Valleys yesterday

Fancy swapping for a day? You get it on with sheep and I go around robbing people and queuing for dole cheques. Sound a plan?

[Soldier_Of_Fortune]

There musnt have been many sheep around the Valleys yesterday

Fancy swapping for a day? You get it on with sheep and I go around robbing people and queuing for dole cheques. Sound a plan?

Dole cheques

Yer..................in the 90's

[Steffan]

There musnt have been many sheep around the Valleys yesterday

Fancy swapping for a day? You get it on with sheep and I go around robbing people and queuing for dole cheques. Sound a plan?

Dole cheques

Yer..................in the 90's

Excuse my ignorance. Now I know why I had a 24 hour ban and you didn't...

[Soldier_Of_Fortune]

Yer because mentioning sheep and valleys constitutes a ban.

[Soldier_Of_Fortune]

Haha fair enough...always nice to see you Steff

[Nakatomi Plaza]

Interesting news regarding the backroom staff at Anfield. Looks like Rodgers assistant Colin Pascoe, and coach Mike Marsh will be leaving Liverpool. From an outsiders point of view, they look like scapegoats for Liverpool's disappointig season.

[Crimey]

Rumours are that Rafa's old assistant Pako Ayesteran will be brought in to replace Colin Pascoe.

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