Match Day Thread Manchester United vs Liverpool

I don't agree with that logic though.

Aim for first and you're 15 points off top by Christmas? Squad deflated and feel season is already over. Aim for fourth and 2 points off top 4 at Christmas? Squad still see chance of finishing 4th and therefore morale is a lot better in the team.

 

Shouldn't be aiming for any specific position, should just be trying to win every game and if you can't win the game, make sure you don't lose it.

What at will be will be come the end of the season.

 

I understand what you're saying about trying to win every game but comparing Liverpool to Bournemouth is just plain ridiculous. One as just been promoted and will still be happy if they finish 20th, the other is Liverpool Football Club.

There is nobody more realistic than me but a club of this side should be aiming to win the league every season no matter how strong or poor the squad looks compared to others. Everyone can only play eleven men at a time.

Expectations aren't the title, expectations are probably fourth. Doesn't mean we should settle for fourth though does it? You say we go into every game to win, are you sure about that? Are you sure every single member of the club wants to desperately win every game? Because I'm pretty sure we lack fight in a lot of matches such as against West Ham not too long ago.

I'm not saying the club wanted to lose, I'm saying some people obviously were not motivated enough to take that game seriously and therefore deserved to lose! Clubs aiming for first don't lose focus, desire or fight.

You say no one that's got 70pts will say that's enough and maybe that's true, but when you've won three or four on the bounce (or got good results) and get some breathing room they can drop off a bit. Its the same thing; aka the loss against West Ham!

 

TBH, I'm more of a 'one game at a time' man myself

 

I used Bournemouth to exaggerate the point. However the same point can be said for us, just to a lesser degree.

Tell the lads "the aim is to beat United on Saturday," and they'll respond... "Right on! We can do it". Give them the same challenge each weekend.

Tell them "we're aiming to win the title this season" you're not going to motivate them, likely you'll do the opposite.

I'm not sure your job... Something to do with charities so I'm making this up...

But if your boss told you your aim was to get 1000 people to donate a million quid by lunchtime you'd not even try because it is clearly unreachable and ridiculous.

 

Again, that's an impossible target. winning the league isn't, it's just very unlikely.

 

Twisting it around, if the manager tells his players the aim is fourth, isn't that a bit demoralising for the players? Its basically telling them they aren't good enough and the best they can hope for is fourth!

Since the aim should be the best possible realistic outcome, some would take that as not actually being good enough for fourth either but if we have a good season and we might just do it...

 

Good luck!! Hope you win in the 93rd minute with a dubious penalty and United have a man or two sent off. Couldn't happen to a nicer club, could it. Would love Lallana to start doing something decent after the crazy money paid for him but I have a hunch that if he is still doing naff he'll go back to Southampton on loan, and wouldn't that be great for all the Saints supporters who love him not!!

 

Surely this is simply about a philosophy, how you approach the season rather than setting specific goals?
The same philosophy should apply to Bournemouth as to us - aim to get as high as you possibly can. In the end, the relative merits of each squad will give them their natural place, but their attitudes should be the same.
A board encouraging their team to give their all by telling them the sky's the limit is not the same as setting them specific targets beyond their capabilities and considering them failures if they don't make it.

 

Nothing wrong with telling the squad that the aim is to get back into the top four at the start, once you are in it the manager should then push that little harder and say "we are in the top four, we don't drop out, third is two points away then we are in the chase second". If you keep that sort of mentality up first is not impossible.



Disclaimer....................I am talking about good teams, not Liverpool

 

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I don't think any of us thought he was going to be good enough to be a regular starter for Liverpool, and he could've done down as a Southampton great had he stayed at your place. He's a useful squad player here at Anfield at best. It really is a shame when players like Lallana decide to throw years of progress away at a club for a bit of extra £££.

 

Bit harsh on Lallana to suggest he moved for the money IMO. All players should have ambition and not many people would argue that moving from Saints to Liverpool wasn't a step up the ladder for his career (no disrespect to Saints intended). How could he not take the opportunity?

 

I reckon 442 diamond

 

The aim needs to be pushing things a bit but not totally unrealistic. Winning the league is totally unrealistic.

We've probably got the 5th or 6th best squad. 4th is a challenging but realistic aim.

Overall though I think the aim each game is to win. As long as you're doing that it doesn't matter What the seasonal goal is.

 

That has to be a classic statement. Lots of players seem to sign for Liverpool who suddenly become "not good enough", have you ever considered it may be the manager who is "not good enough" to use them correctly? They all do good enough at other clubs to make you buy them and when they leave they don't look too bad either.

 

It's not an impossible target, just very unlikely. I think you're being pessimistic about your fundraising possibilities, Greez.

 

Match day b b b biatchywatches !!

 

I said they weren't good enough before they signed. We could have Bill Shankly in charge and they still wouldn't be good enough.

Scott Sinclair, Joleon Lescott, Mateja Kezman, Andy Carroll, Victor Moses etc. The list of players who haven't managed to step up to the top level from lower leagues and clubs is almost never ending. To claim that it isn't down to the players and is down to the managers instead and that players being the main problem is simply a falsehood perpetuated on the Liverpool board is pretty silly.

 

Lallana
Lovren
Ballotelli
Borini
Manquillo
Markovic
Sakho
Moses
Carroll
and umpteen others have all been rated at other clubs yet the shear enormity of playing for your club suddenly turns them bad?