Match Day Thread Home to Sunderland

Very slow in all areas tonight. Salah and VVD are past it on recent showings. Konate is a mistake waiting to happen in every game. Macca has been poor most of this season and dwells on the ball to much.

Top four will be a massive achievement this year

 

Depends what mood she's in...

 

Trust you

 

well i'm really unimpressed with some of the recent decisions

 

said very nicely. I’m not as polite.

• team shape is not great
• Fitness poor
• Confidence low
• Set pieces defending and attacking is weak
• Movement is bad
• Passing is sideways and backwards in an attempt to build slowly

I could go on but our team is passive at best. It’s like the identity that Klopp built has been completely trashed and the new identity makes your eyes bleed.

While Slot may not have chosen the new personnel (debatable as to what influence he had) and I completely accept a few bumps along the way (not this though) but he sure as **** controls all of the other bullet points above. They are ALL coaching related issues. Last year was very little change and a lot of muscle memory. This year we see his vision. I wish I couldn’t because it’s hard for it to be unseen

I'm afraid i want him gone. I’ve seen enough to know that he’s not up to it. The real question though, is who would replace him. That’s a much harder question for me.

 

I think this needs to be said - really, from last New Year onwards, with the odd game excepted (Newcastle at home, and City away spring to mind), we just haven't played that well. "But we won the league!" And we did. But the energy seemed to seep out of the team long before they went on a bender with four games left of the season (which I don't begrudge them), and long, long before the Jota tragedy. Ekitike, Rio, Frimpong, and Kerkez seemed to give us a buzz in pre-season, but that fizz has well gone. And watching Wirtz on the break is like watching a confused parent doing an egg-and-spoon race. Macca seems to be playing in diving boots.

 

i'm much less polite in person

i thought the summer transfer window was at best really poor and has left us with a much weaker squad . We are really left with not much more than the first eleven and very few of them get any game time at all to the extent if Endo played i would need to check my medication and Chiesa must wonder if he will ever get picked to play except when all plans are out the window except get it in the box

 

There's a distinct lack of partnerships in the team, not helped by an inconsistent front lineup. Ekitike and Wirtz seemed to gel straight away but haven't played enough together to develop their natural link up instinct. Gakpo does his own thing and Isak isn't getting any service.

We're not playing to anybody's strengths and the slow build up isn't achieving anything with no passes to players on a run, all are to feet. When a player is looking for a give and go, they are ignored.

Bring back heavy metal.

 

Ekitike is basically the Firmino type player that we've got used to playing with. We never really worked out how to play with Nunez and similar is occurring with Isak.

Gakpo and Salah either side aren't going to provide width. The full backs will when all of them are fit but we're suffering on the right without Bradley/Frimpong and Gakpo ignores the width on the left.

 

Not sure what Chiesa has to do to get significant game time one of the very few players that have showed passion this season. Ironically Chiesa probably saved Slots job for the moment last night.

I am more in the Slot out camp at the moment. I feel sorry for him as I am not sure the signings were all his choice. With Jota and the huge decline of so many players its a lot to account for. I just not seen any improvement or new ideas from Slot since the slump. As others have said who would we get as a replacement.

 

There is no pace…no width, little creativity. We are easy to play

 

On a positive note, that's the first time in the league we've come back from a goal down.

I think we stick it out with Slot until the end of the season and see where we are. Any manager we would want, not just an interim, would be available in the summer, not January. Alonso apparently having a bit of a rough time. If Real decide he isn't for them, maybe he'll be released at the end of the season.

 

fairly obvious he was behind Quansaah being flogged

 

yeah i can't see him being binned before end of season unless things get even worse or the players make it clear they want him gone .

 

Big mistake by the owners not to sack him weeks ago. We look useless, no pressing, no effort. We've become so boring to watch, regardless of results, bit I fear his league title has bought him time and the owners will hold on and on until they have no choice.

 

I think we're now holding out till Jan, looking to buy Guehi and Seymeno and hope they rejuvenate the season.

If it doesn't work with them Slot will be out.

Personally I thought we should have bought Seymeno instead of Isak in the Summer, as he was a better fit for our style.

 

Isak Looks awful for what style we should be playing. Criminal Ekitike doesn't start ahead of him

 

With the players we've brought in, a complete change of shape was required along with a new game plan. My lad is positive that if we'd brought in another cb we would have gone 5 at the back, it's what slot wanted but now we are short of options he doesn’t know what to do.

It shouldn't be a question of ekitike or isak both should be playing.

Isak
Ekitike wirtz
Mac grav sboz
Kerkez vvd konate frimpong

Solid three in the middle, width provided by the fullbacks.

Ekitke and wirtz allowed to do what they want to open up space.

 

has he ever played 5 at the back or 3-4-3 / 3-5-2 anyway else? That’s would be a significant move away from what won him the title.

 

He isn’t going to get sacked mid season, it’s just not what we do - there is plenty to play for so might as well just get behind them all and see what happens