Thought the guy was unlucky to claim an OG, his performance last night was pretty solid in my opinion. there were a couple of times he was stranded one on one and dealt well with those melodramatic Italian players. i was also impressed with Robinson's legs near the end of the game; still making runs. did anyone else notice shelvy's performance tail off quite dramatically in the second half, i highly rate Jonjo so i hope this was just down to match fitness! last point; i got the impression that the players around borini didnt really trust him? there were a number of chances to feed him a pass, get him involved and they weren't taken. have his team mates lost faith or am i being to dramatic?
Coates and Robbo were brilliant. Bar the OG, Coates was my man of the match. It's just a shame that the experienced defenders in Carra and Johnson let us down. Shelvey - brilliant in the first half, didn't get going in the second half but was non existent once Gerrard came on. Ruined the shape.
I had Robinson as MOM but yes Coates was also good. Shelvey seemed dead on his feet in the last 15mins we should have used Sahin.
now i have had a chance to read a couple of the other threads it looks as if we are all agreed on the defenders, its nice to see unity! i am also surprised by the lack of doom and gloom, are we waiting till monday?
The lads started well and played their game. What went wrong? Half time came. Coates only redirected a ball already going towards goal nor could have he gotten out of the way, that was a no win situation. Last night was a good lesson for the younger lads, an easy win would be no lesson, that was a fairly gnarly tough Italian team and the way hte lads handled them in the first half was very encouraging indeed even if we lacked a wee bit of penetration and delayed early balls. Even in the tussle for the ball the young lads matched them. One thing that worries me is when we build up a bit of steam attacking our midfield goes to sleep defensively leaving massive holes behind which ae exposed time and again. LUCAS you are sorely missed, I think Lucas' presence would possibly have prevented both the 1st and 3rd goals from happening.
ALSO how the giddy aunt did that undinese player that brought down downing stay on the pitch!!!!!!!! unbelievable jeff!
OG goes with the territory for a CB so I wouldn't blame him for that. I agree that he had a really good game otherwise, stood his ground well on the one-on-one stuff. At times he reminded me a bit of Hyypia the way he stepped into the tackle. If he can be half the player Sami was we'll be on to a good'un. And yeah, if it's not in the rules that a blatant rugby tackle on a player through on goal is a straight red, then it should be.
Coates played very well -apart from the og. His main mistake was being wrong side of the attacker which left him facing the goal instead of the ball. However whilst the cross had pace it didn't have much height so where was Carra? The ball should never have reached Coates. I agree with saint. There are aspects of his play that remind me of Sami.
I dont know how Skrtel wasn't dropped for Coates 3 or 4 games ago, he's looked pretty reliable when he's played and Skrtel has looked anything but.
Coates seems more assured this season. Almost unbeatable last night - didn't go to ground in 1 on 1's, read the game brilliantly, and can play the ball. Almost scored as well (in the right goal!). Coates and Agger partnership anyone? ...
You playing my FIFA 13 career mode? I only saw the first half but Coates is coming along nicely. Let's not forget that this team was a penalty away from being in the group stages of CL. Di Natale, Armero, Danilo, they have talent there no doubt. They ar more of a team than us in terms of playing together, everyone knows the style, etc.
Agree, It was always going to be a tough game especially when we were making so many changes. I dont think we should be rotating the back 5 at the moment, pick a back 5 and stick with it. Rodgers criticised the defending last night but he has to take some of the blame for it, for changing it all the time and therefore not creating a settled defence.
So hold up, Carra was good, Coates was good, Robbo was MOTM for some, and Johnson was OK, so how did we let 3 slip? I heard Reina made some good saves as well? Midfield not pulling its weight?
Coates and Agger could be strong, i love Aggers runs from the back when opposition players just seem to let him glide through (probably because they know he cant score!lol)
I agree with this. I don't really rate Skrtel but putting that to one side (well, trying to) I think Coates as been better so far this season
The first goal was world class from Di Natale. No arguments. Second was an OG after Pinzi didn't get sent off. Third goal was a fantastic shot from outside the box after more class from Di Natale.
True but they all stemmed from a mistake. The problem is that along with Reina, the defence seem to play well for the majority of the match but every mistake is punished.
