Thoughts then on negotiating with Salah for two and half months and thus allowing Chelsea to come in then? Not all about bungs but about being efficient in your job!
Thats it, we wont get a dm I wouldnt have thought after just reading this "He reflected: "I knew there would be a time in my career when I'd need to adapt my role and drop a bit deeper. "I knew when that time came other people would be talking about it more than myself. Brendan has spoken to me about the role an awful lot recently, and about the adaptation, and that's what everyone will see moving forward. "It's more about people understanding that I'm not going to be the Steven Gerrard I've been for the last 15 years and going from goalline to goalline at every opportunity. "It's going to be more of a controlled performance and a role that can help the team win games, rather than trying to rescue games on my own. "I do have to get my head around it too, but with Brendan on the training ground every day and speaking to him on a regular basis I think I can make the adaptation really quickly. "It's not as though I'm being asked to do something that I've never done before. It is something I have done in the past for England and Liverpool. "I think a really top performance from me in the next couple of games will make people realise why we are doing this and that maybe it is the right time. "When the manager first arrived he said he still saw me as an attacking midfielder and further down the line there was a role that would suit me in his system that I would be able to play really well and I'd still be able to contribute until around my mid-30s. That's what we are trying to do now. "It suits me perfectly. I want to play for this club for as long as I can, so to have a manager who still believes in me and wants me around for years to come is a great confidence boost."" So him for this position and Lucas when back for rest of season Thought this might be the case on why we werent going for a DM Oh well, lets see how it works we need 3 in the middle if Gerrads going DM
Everton have strengthened. Utd have strengthened, Spurs have players in abundance from a summer spend up and are just starting to click. I don't care about the 3 teams above us.....we're scrapping for fourth. If we sign nobody, are you seriously suggesting that we shouldn't be concerned as it stands right now? Appreciate that the onus is on the IF. We may well sign 3 quality players and shut the doubters (myself included) up. But right now, i'm worried about all 3 of our competitors. Very worried.
i think we need context i googled yesterday "salah rumours december" and found a link as far back as there that chelsea were interested we just don;t know as fans whats gone on. we don't know how much salah is getting paid by chelsea... how much his agent got paid... or what LFC were asked for. We don't know what basel wanted. We do know we were linked in november to the guy. Aside from that we've no clue. 2.5months? who knows. how do we know chelsea only came in and 24 hours later the player agreed. how?
Me personally, I love 3-5-2 and we ALMOST have the players for it but they have to be fit. 3 strong CB's, fairly good there but they have to be fit! DM is crucial and an area to strengthen. LB is Enrique was good is OK, but that RWB would need help. We are sorted on the other spots. Just would take time, likea pre-season to iron things out with it but again, I like it. You buy say...... Fernando and Maggio and you suddenly have a back line like: --------------Sakho-------------- ---------Skrtel----Agger-------- Maggio-------Fernando--------Enrique not bad at all!
well here's a controversial view 1996.... england... paul ince. Try this one on for size .................Mingolet .........Skertl Gerrard Sahko Johnson.......................Enrique .........Henderson....X (allen) ................coutinho ........suarez........Sturridge Make it a genuine 3-5-2 with gerrard as sweeper. make those full backs not drop into a 5 automatically but push to close down further up. hell call it 3-4-3 in attack
Gerrard of old could have done it. I think he could have had a great career in just about any position on the field. Right now he has been looking terrible in Defensive Midfield. Can he adapt again? Maybe... I don't know... I guess we'll have to wait and see. For now though- he needs help. I think he'd be fine if it were two midfielders sitting deep... but sitting in that spot by himself he doesn't seem to have the legs. I don't think we will get top 4 without a new DM.
well thats one way of thinking on it. I was thinking of how ince was "forced" to sit in by venables and it allow him to play sheringham and shearer as well as anderosn and mcmanaman. ince didn't like it... not saying it'd work but its one crazy way to use gerrard
A modern day DM has to fall into the back line anyway when required. For all of Gerrards strengths, I'm totally unconvinced by him in this type of role.
i'm unconvinced by him as a holding midfielder too. the point is that he'd be pinned in a back 3 line so he can't go wandering. the idea is to stop him trying and failing to shuffle one side and the other in front of a back 4 then ball watching and losing guys. when we have the ball our other cbs go wider and he sits as libero and playmaker. then the full backs SHOULD have no issue getting out and blocking a cross cos theirs an extra CB to come over and cover if they get beaten by the man. finally it hinges on Coutinho making the third man in midfield genuinely.
