Which Martin does he mean you wonder... please log in to view this image So if Skrtel goes, Skrtel makes the push?
So basically, he was dropped because we needed a leader. Agger obviously isn't that leader, and Skrtel wasn't seen to be either. Carra leaves in the summer, so we'll have no leader again between Agger and Skrtel. Same problem, 6 months later. He'll still be the backup CB and not a first team starter.
Well, we will sign some one and Rodgers will be looking for a leader. Agger and Skrtel are both captains of their national teams so they must have it in them. Maybe it is leading in English that is the issue.
If that is the case, then Rodgers has handled this situation terribly. If Skrtel was in his plans for next season then he should have kept him in the team instead of replacing him with an inferior player who proceeded to perform worse and destroy Skrtel's confidence. Skrtel is almost 29 and on big wages, so it would be best for the club to cash in and replace him with a younger & better player. Of course, now that he has only played 3 games this year his value will have plummeted and he will be difficult to offload. This is all Jamie Carragher's fault, he is absolutely destroying the club, even when he leaves we are still going to be clearing up his mess.
I'm assuming you're a WUM, but if not then you clearly haven't been watching very closely this season. The Agger and Skrtel partnership was a shambles at the start of the season, leaking goals and just looking generally inept in all departments. Since Carragher came into the side we've kept 8 clean sheets in the last 14 games (I think, gonna need someone to check this) and we've just looked much more defensively solid. Although I just read the last line of your post and now realised I've wasted my time trying to reply sensibly to you. Oh well.
Not many lead in quite as vocal a manner as Carra. It's always difficult to work out what BR actually means. In (presumably) an attempt to avoid saying the wrong thing he ends up talking in riddles or contradicting himself. You have to try reading between the lines, and are often none the wiser. He may have told Skrtel he'll get his place back after Jamie retires, and that would encourage him to stay, but if were not looking for an addition then the leadership problem doesn't go away. If we are going to bring someone in, then Martin is doomed to the subs' bench again, so how long is he going to be happy with that? I know Skrtel is a bit inconsistent and rash at times, but imo he brings an aggression in both boxes that we really do need. A few weeks ago the daft thought occurred to me that BR had put Jamie in to give him game time before his retirement, but surely that's far too sentimental for modern-day football?
It was not a "shambles", we were trying to adapt to a new style of play & playing with a much higher defensive line, so it was obviously going to take time. We actually won two league games in a row 3-0 just before Skrtel was dropped. It is no surprise that since Carragher returned we have abolished our patient passing philosophy and started to play horrendously deep and defensive. I don't know about you, but I much preferred winning games 5-2 & 3-2 rather than drawing 0-0.
I tend to agree...although I'm not certain either if you're a smart WUM or just say some silly things! I think Carra started playing again for sentimental reasons and he wasn't going to weaken the defense, so might as well play him. All this bollocks about needing a leader is great to save Skrtel a bit of face in the media, as it applies to Agger or Reina as well as Martin. If Skrtel's back in contention next season, then clearly the need for a leader wasn't that much of an issue in the first place, so BR's been feeding us bollocks about reasons for starting Jamie again. I like Skrtel as defender, he attacks the ball in either box. That is something no one else on our team does. Carra will play dirty and stop attackers getting to it, or put his body in the way, Agger just loses his man, but Skrtel attacks the ball and gets rid. I think Agger needs to step up next season and lead the defense. He's had enough practice and time to learn from Jamie.
No, you are absolutely spot on. That is exactly what has happened. Carragher has an outrageous political influence, and he timed his decision to retire perfectly. He had played the previous two games where we had drawn 2-2 with Arsenal & Manchester City and he was being lauded in the media for being a great organizer (despite playing poorly & being at fault for three of the goals). To be honest, I cannot put too much blame on Rodgers. I have refused to succumb to Carargher's political influence on Football Manager & Fifa before, and I have paid the consequences as he turned the dressing room on me and used the media to voice his discontent, which ultimately cost me my job. Rodgers could not afford to go down the same path. You have to say, Carragher has played an absolute blinder, the devious little rat.
Not sure what's happened to Skrtel. Had a great season last year then but then year seems to have gone back to the seasons before where he made a couple of mistakes, most notable the passback to allow City to equalise at the start of the season. If he goes then we'll need to replace him with a dominant defender in the air as Agger isn't that type of player. I actually think Agger has had a pretty poor season. He's not been good at marking either from open play or from corners. He has bene getting easily beaten by simple movement. Granted, on the ball he's good at bringing the ball forward and help starting attacks but first and foremost I want my CB to be able to defend.
Originally Posted by DavidNgog90 "To be honest, I cannot put too much blame on Rodgers. I have refused to succumb to Carargher's political influence on Football Manager & Fifa before, and I have paid the consequences as he turned the dressing room on me and used the media to voice his discontent, which ultimately cost me my job. Rodgers could not afford to go down the same path. You have to say, Carragher has played an absolute blinder, the devious little rat." God help us if we should start picking a team based on Fifa & Football Manager experiences. If that was the case then Messi should be playing for us as I managed to buy him on Football Manager once when I was LFC manager
Liverpool are my 2nd favourite team (1st is Watford) but I think we need a consistent player, more than a highly rated inconsistent player. Skrtel hasn't been that consistent recently.
