I wouldn't sell him for 5mill at least...we can't buy a solid, experienced wide player who is defensively adept for that price. Downing's average at best, but we should keep him for the squad unless the fee is more like 8mill.
I remember when he gave an interview saying how he was undroppable based on how well he had been playing. Over the season a lot of posters here would find excuses (oh he's balancing out the team) for every move he made ("that backpass wasn't so bad because if we scored too early, that could motivate the opposition"). He's honestly gotten on my tits because he legitimately thinks he is decent enough to stay in the squad. He doesn't see anything wrong with his own play. Yet he infuriates us. "Open pass to Suarez? Better run into the corner, dawdle, and pass back to someone. Ten people in the box? Better dribble past them and try to score instead of crossing. Player close to me in the box? I guess I should float a ball over to the far post." He's been below-average this season. In certain games where everyone looked average, he looked alright. In games where everyone played well, he underwhelmed. I think he's probably a decent enough guy, wants the club to succeed and all that, but he's not fit for the club. He'll do well at West Ham where he can delude himself that his improvement has been anywhere near Henderson's. I'm very glad Rodgers got rid of Shelvey and is most hopefully replacing Downing. Two weak points gone. I might sound very harsh because they were both loyal servants to the club, and had their moments, but they really were a millstone around our necks (Downing much more so). Here's to hoping West Ham pony up again (and I wish them nothing but luck).
Full props to Downing: he does not give up. He was the right mentality. It is a shame that he is a little bit s**t though really....
When has Downing ever scored the winning goal of a big game? Created the assist to win us the game? Never, he scores if we're winning comfortably and assists when were 2/3-0 up.
To be fair, he's not been worth £20mil but for a squad player he's a pretty decent option. He improved dramatically last year and if he can improve in a similar way this year then he'll provide some goals and assists. There's no point getting rid of him for £5mil as we wouldn't be able to get someone with the same experience for a similar price. He also gives good protection from a defensive point of view down the right hand side. At least now he has serious competition for his place in Luis Alberto, Aspas & Sterling so this may also force him to step up. My verdict - unless we get an offer of £10mil then keep him and allow him to fight for his place with new people.
I agree with Danilo. Downing has improved this season but only up to a mediocre level. Some people believe he is a decent option but I would disagree. When I look at the bench or others in the squad, I want to have the confidence that the player can contribute and perform as and when required. This LFC squad has far too many useless players but we've started to shift them which is good. £8m for Downing plus the savings in wages will go towards a player who can have a bigger impact.
The problem is, it's all well and good getting rid of the dead wood, but in recent times we haven't replaced them. Remember a couple of seasons ago, we got rid of Jovanavic, Konchesky, Poulson etc but then we bought in the likes of Adam, Downing and Carroll. This has happened far to often, we finally clear out the players that aren't good enough then replace them with players who are equally average. As a squad, I don't see us progressing until that is changed, I hope this season the players we've bought in won't be the same.
True - we replaced crap with crap. Buying Coutinho and Sturridge gave me great confidence in our future dealings. I think the signings of Alberto and Aspas are 'safe' but uninspiring signings.
Didn't the three leaving go on freebies? The three incoming cost £65m!!! To me, there is a problem with the quality of replacements but the bigger issue is the amount of money we have squandered! Of that £63m, we have recovered about £20m, what's the odds on us getting £45m for Downing?
I'm not too sure that I fully agree with getting rid of Shelvey - at 21 he was still a developing player. At 21 Henderson had just come to the team and there were plenty of detractors ready to sleight him for his performances. Just for comparison, Shelvey went out on loan to Blackpool at the age of 19 and scored 6 in 10 appearances (+3 assists in 848 minutes). Henderson at the age of 19 went on loan to Coventry City and scored 1 goal in 10 appearances (+2 assists in 801 minutes). Replacing Downing however, would be to dispose of a player who, for all his hard work, has flatlined in his performances for us (and never really achieved his last season performances for Villa) and for whom I have little faith will ever improve beyond a stopgap...
I can't refute this because I haven't seen Aspas play at Liverpool nor have I seen Downing play at Celta de Vigo. But I know that at this point, Downing is a known variable. We know how he plays. We know where he is going to trap himself in the corner. We know who he will pass back to (Henderson) and where (to a spot that Henderson can either play it back to him or look like an idiot). We know exactly which spectator in the Kop is going to get a mouthful of match ball when he crosses. We know this, Downing knows this, Rodgers knows this, his teammates know this, and his opponents know this. At this stage Aspas can be either a second Downing or better. Alberto is talented and may be a surprise. Downing is plain, predictable and boring. I know who I would rather play.
Based on what? So many posters on this board seem very eager to dismiss our new signings as rubbish, safe, uninspiring, not good enough for top 4, or whatever else when, frankly, they have no idea what they're like as a player. I'll accept 'unknown'. But nearly anything else is just prejudging them on absolutely **** all - unless you happen to religiously follow La Liga. I'll say it again, countless players have come here as unknowns and turned up alright. Let them kick a ball for the club first! I have faith in our new transfer group, which is why I'm optimistic about Alberto and Aspas rather than dismissive from the bat.
