Echo have said that Rodgers dismissed the idea of a defensive coach, and feels he already has the staff needed to put things right.
I thought Sakho looked good when he came on against Bournemouth. Looked far more comfortable in the left of a back 3 compared to Lovren who was beaten far too easily. Guess it helps being left footed and having played left back a bit. I just love watching Sakho pass the ball. He looks like he shouldn't be able to but he just fizzes it into the forwards feet with pace and accuracy. For a CB it's very impressive. 24 the guy could become a monster of a CB he just needs the chance.
Thats the point. He hasn't had the chance under Brendan who trys to prove Lovrens critics wrong. Wednesday may have been tipping point.
With Lovren being injured, if BR is going to stick to 3 at the back he'll be forced to use Sakho. I can see BR being bloody stubborn an changing to a back 4 for Sunday just so he doesn't have to use Sakho and goes with Skrtel/Toure though
I think we need to go back to a four on Sunday, Arsenal will tear us apart with a three! I'd prefer Mankiller, Moreno, Toure and Sakho at the back with Lucas protecting. Hendo and Can playing B2B, Sterling, Marko and Lallana making up the front three. Couldn't give a **** about who's in net, we're screwed whatever happens there.
Yes. I didn't say Flanno because he needs to gain match fitness before playing games like this, plus I'm not 100% sure he is back I said Lallana instead of Coutinho because I think the latter has been disappointed this season. He seems to disappear after 20-30 minutes, he also seems to have his best games coming off the bench (makes sense if he's only coping for half hour tops). Migs won't play, it'll be Jones... [video=youtube;99CDSkIsvkM]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=99CDSkIsvkM[/video] ...
And I thought Coutinho did well yesterday. He goes past players in the middle of the pitch so easily it's a joy to watch when he's on form. Also, he was excellent against Arsenal last year.
He did do well in the first half but then he disappeared again. I'd questioned before whether it was the other team getting a better grip of the game that isolated his impact but I think its the other way around now, I think his drop in performance is allowing the other team to take control. We became better again once Can replaced him.
Coutinho was far more influential in the second half. Play him deeper in a CM role and you can see his impact - he and Can are the only ones who can carry the ball from the midfield and take players on. This is what we need in order to drive the team further up the pitch. His decision making does need to improve - I think there is more pressure on him to score more goals whereas before, he would simply play the right pass to the attacker/striker. And Sakho was a beast - I know it's only Bournemouth but we saw how Lovren was beaten so easily in the first half, combined with the fact that this was Sakho's first appearance in a long time. Shows how good his positioning his compared to the clowns (Lovren and Skrtel). And I agree on his passing - he will get stick for 'looking' uncomfortable but he is by far our most effective defender on the ball. People think Skrtel and Lovren are good on the ball because they're conventional and just end up passing to the full backs, each other or to the keeper. Sakho's passes are quick, direct and go straight into the midfield. It's starts attacks and bypasses lines.
when does the ban kick in? As won't balotelli now have a chance to appeal the "harshness" of the punishment? so there will be an appeal deadline after which the ban takes effect?
