The Liverpool Thread

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Who else is there to play? Chiesa can cover, but Slot just doesnt rate him at all otherwise, he wouldve rotated him more instead of hi son Gakpo stinking up the gaff and low on confidence.
He would offer more than Salah atm. Even if it was from a defensive point of view. And most likely attacking tbh.
 
He would offer more than Salah atm. Even if it was from a defensive point of view. And most likely attacking tbh.

What Salah does, is hold the width and create space as he always has two men on him. Because of who he is and the threat he carries to produce something. Which becomes three or four men when he’s in the box. His pace has gone. And he’s that predictable that he’ll cut inside and lose it. But he does give good balance to the side so there is that.

It won’t go beyond this summer though.
 
Man that one smarts. We didn’t deserve to win overall. But we defo didn’t deserve to lose. Losing to them. In that self-inflicted manner. That one REALLY smarts.

Yesterdays admin-

Title Defence Countdown:
11 wins down/ 13 to go. (Adjusted from pre-season target of 27 wins.).
39 points down/ 39 to go. (Adjusted from pre-season target of 89 points.).

The first half is a horribly dull affair. L’pool are frustratingly passive. City have all the possession but are totally sterile and toothless with it. Liverpool up the tempo second-half and deservedly take the lead. They should be out of sight by this point given the glaring chances missed. When City equalise, despite riding their luck for the majority of the second-half through which L’pool should have buried them, they deserve to be level. Down to L’pool becoming frustratingly passive again encouraging City on. L’pool then proceed to self-inflictingly throw the game away when the goalkeeper completely loses his head. Which had been a thing with him all second-half. The City ‘keeper then makes one of the finest saves you’ll ever see to deny L’pool what would have been a fair draw. And the game is rounded out by more absolute madness from the goalie. That costs the Reds arguably their best player this season this coming Wednesday night when the officials fail to use an ounce of common sense and understanding of the actual game.

A proper frustrating game that encapsulates a proper frustrating season. Good, bad and utterly ridiculous through the 90 mins. Some of it on the manager. Some of it not. Some of it on the players. Some of it not. But a season where every little thing that could go wrong, out of our control, has.

Let’s start with Arne. As he’s on-line Public Enemy #1-

The manager can’t legislate for his goalkeeper losing his head. He was very lucky he didn’t take Marmoush out earlier in the second-half. His bizarre, ridiculous decision to fly out like that on a player going nowhere the penalty was bad enough and ultimately cost us the game. Just what the heck he was doing spending most all injury-time in their half, which cost us big Dom through that farce, only he could tell you? 🤷‍♂️🤦‍♂️

The manager can’t legislate for players missing glorious chance after glorious chance. Nor can he legislate for terrible officiating that saw Guehi somehow stay on. Whilst Dom now sits a game for little different. Except his denial of a goal scoring opportunity comes when the ball is in the actual bleeping net! Not sure how much more clear an opportunity you can have than actually scoring!!!!! 🤦‍♂️

And he can’t be blamed for the natural thing most teams do, not least when two top sides play each other, and not least when one has been struggling all year like we have, to drop back and defend a late lead. Something we’ve had to change the style of play to stem the bad run of Autumn losses and have got used to doing. It was frustrating and annoying as all heck. But that’s not a tactical thing per se to drop off again. It’s a natural mentality thing if you add the context of everything. Just where we are this year.

What he can do is be far better in his substitutions. As limited as they are. The gulf of Guardiola’s riches to bring on compared to Arne’s realistic 2/3 players was massive. Reijnders, Foden and Gonzalez alone don’t even come on! We end up, game in, game out, with goosed players after 80 or so minutes having to play all the time. Who continually come up short in injury time down to a combination of having very little option to change and rotate. And them having a truncated pre-season down to tragedy they are still trying to catch-up on. Thats not an excuse. That’s just factual reality. But regardless, he HAD to use them better yesterday and didn’t. Curtis should have been on earlier. The brilliant Kerkez ran himself into the ground and it was begging out for AndyRobbo. It was crying out for Enrico to replace the largely ineffective Salah or Gakpo. (Mo’s phenomenal ball for Ekitike’s woefully missed header aside.). Although we are now in a horrid situation where taking Mo off is nigh on impossible no matter how bad he is after the Leeds outburst. The moment Arne does, and Mo goes cry A the media again, we are back to square one with that entitled nonsense.

And he can be more pro-active in first-half’s. There were, as in many games recently, a lot of positives to take from that second half and the intensity and attacking flair we played with. But it’s beyond frustrating to see that continually happen after first-half’s of games we look unprepared and disinterested in. I get the logic behind conserving energy the first-half of games when we are so depleted and lads are having to go the full 90 over and over. But there has to be more balance between halves.

Kudos to Konate, Kerkez and big Dom. Who were all excellent and at the level L’pool vs City demands. The other 8 players, not least the abysmal Alisson, Gakpo and Salah, not so much.

City got away with one yesterday. Liverpool were their own worst enemy, yet again, in allowing that to happen in a game we should have been out of sight through. With a Worldie free-kick that deserved to win any game. But didn’t. Again.

L’pool vs City is one of them and often a coin flip. But the frustration after yesterday really smarts this AM. Sunderland is now a must win. The scope for a draw has gone after yesterday. The top 5 is nowhere near done with 39 points still on the board and a league as poor as this/ everyone still to play each other. Not least ourselves with Brentford, Chelsea, the Ev, Utd, Villa et al still to play. But the margin for error is becoming slimmer and slimmer.

Be better Liverpool. Every last one of you.

A last point, whilst II remember, as bouncing as what the atmosphere was (Everyone was just stunned frustrated at he end rather than mad), the booing of Guehi was proper mad and out of order. It wasn’t his fault we never went back in for him. Unbecoming of us that.

Up the frustrating, own worst enemy, Reds.
 
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Dont even care how we played but kudos to the team to turn up and battle hard and show the fans they still want this CL spot.
 
Just after 2 AM when I got him and into bed this morning. Writing these musings after a little over 4 hours kip. But when the Champions put in a Champion performance like that, I think I’ll be good on adrenaline taking me through the day.

Todays admin-

Title Defence Countdown:
12 wins down/ 12 to go. (Adjusted from pre-season target of 27 wins.).
42 points down/ 37 to go. (Adjusted from pre-season target of 89 points.).

2 defeats in last 18 matches.
P 18 W 10 D 6 L 2 F 37 A 16 CS: 8
Currently 6th in the PL.
Finished 3rd Europe/ Automatic last 16 with home advantage 2nd.
4th Round FA Cup.

Bar being freezing cold, as it always seems to be at Sunderland (Roker Park used to be the coldest ground the Country bar none when it whipped on off the North Sea that open away terrace), and getting absolutely drenched, that was a belter night out where the Reds finally put in a complete, 90 minute plus performance worthy of Champions. Liverpool wanted it more. Liverpool were first to everything. Liverpool were composed and utterly dominant in possession. Liverpool were rabid out of it. And the last unbeaten home record, in horrid conditions, didn’t stand a chance. With a team that works as hard as anyone, outworked in their own house by the Champion Reds.

Not that it hasn’t been building. There’s been many positive signs, even incrementally, that have been steadily increasing in duration through games for a while now. Which has all noticeably ramped up since Arsenal. They’ve just not been able to consistently put it together for full halves as the co text of this season, emotionally and physically, playing catch-up since the summer, trying to heel, has continued to dog them. But yesterday the Champions FINALLY said ‘F this S!’ And put in a performance worthy of what they are.

And now they should be taking that confidence forward with absolute NOtHING to fear at Forest. And Brighton. And the Ev. And Villa.

But then I was told we were finishing below half-way earlier this week on here so ignore the above and the minimal gap to being back in the top 5. 🤦‍♂️

Two many good individual performances to mention. With the two CH’s especially dominant. Wirtz just continues to show there’s nobody better, playing at a higher level, in the PL currently. Ekitike showed the difference having a proper number 9. His running the channels and hold up play was immense. The only sour note was the injury to the similarly excellent Endo. Devoed for that lad with all the constant commitment he gives for little personal reward.

I almost forgot. I’d forgotten, in the time we haven’t been to Sunderland, that’s it’s like watching a game of Subbuteo where they put you now. 🤦‍♂️. Not Newcastle bad. But ****** high up. But even that gets quickly forgotten when the Champions put in a display like that.

Another big 90 Sat’day night now Redmen. We’ve the Cup there to go win. Then you can rest up for a week before Forest.

Up Arne’s Reds!
 
Honestly gutted for Endo. What an absolute unit to even get up from that kind of injury. Let alone get up and try to play on. Thats what we have been missing at times this season, that fight and desire, putting your body on the line to win. Hoping its not the last time we see him in a Liverpool shirt, but I doubt it. Fingers crossed he recovers in time for the WC
 
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