I got into some debates certainly on lucas. At the time i felt CM was a hard place to develop him in and maybe it hurt him and us but in the end he's put the effort in and got his reward. Really theres a question of when to look at a guy cos i suppose many players who get a bad impression early on do shake it off. One thing though billy, there is the guy that looks at a player like adam before he signs and doesn't like him, I have not done that. Theres the camp that looks at a guy and runs it through their won experiences whatever they may be and quickly comes to a conclusion on a guy... then there's guys who'll defend him no matter what. I'm not saying which cmap anyone is in here but me. I think i've given adam a chance and have not been overly impressed. Thats me running what i see past my own thoughts. Everyone is entitled to their own conclusions. exmaples would be.. kyrgiakos, a fairly simple one. Deen, another fairly simple conclusion to be drawn... for me dossena was given as long as it took for him to look like he was bombing dwon the left wing only for tony hibbert to outpace him with a 5 yard head start too boot.... I feel i can draw a coclusion in my mind but I'm open to changing it if people point out things that maybe i've missed. You've said you are seeing positive signs so I'll keep and eye out. If you of course keep an eye out for the ball watching while player make runs aorund him too
MITO, on Dossena, he is really a strange one. At udinese he looked a class act and now for Napoli, who are in the CL and top 4, he looks pretty good as well. What do you think it is? Formation? I know with Napoli he has 3 CB's to help cover and he can literally roam up and down the side as he pleases. I will wait a bit on Adam, I think he is still going from the main man at Blackpool to not so much a bit part player, but a player who is not the one who is relied upon. Once he finds the correct balance of when to drive forward, when to play the long balls, etc I think he will be fine. I do want him to be a bit more mobile around the center of the field as not just for his game, but for the benefit of the team.
Mate he got caught out 3 times in the second half while Malouda ran in behind him and the third time ultimately led to the goal so I appreciate what your saying I just felt that his contribution to the overall team performance was decent yesterday and I guess being a major factor in both our goals gets him a lot of credit from me. Kenny and the staff will identify these same things hopefully and get the best out of him in the long run. Consider also my point about the midfield manure won the league with last year and I'd say while Adam will never be Alonso he sure as hell is as good as Carrick, Fletcher and Anderson so can't be all bad
Well i would share the sentiment about the staff working with him to improve and such. Certainly gvien his age as i'v epoitned out and the investment we do need to get the most out of him. That said with the merieles money and reputed aquilani money one has to wonder if a new arrival will also create more competition here.
Possibly but I do think IF we can get Gerrard back to full fitness we may be better spending on a striker come Jan and reviewing the midfield berths at the end of the season It's good that we seem better equipped to cope without Stevie these days and that his return to the team is seen as a bonus and not a necessity.
MITO, I honestly don't give a stuff if you feel insulted, it's merely a reflection of they way that I felt reading your limited negative appraisal. As for taking ANYTHING back - get over yourself. You have your opinion and I disagree with you. So as far as I am concerned I am telling it as it is.
An interesting stat on Adam just to add to our earlier discussion mate... Did you know? Adam has set up more shots than any other player at Liverpool in the Premier League this season (25). And one for Johnson who we were chatting about as well... Did you know? Johnson misplaced only one of his 26 passes in his own half this weekend. I know stats don't tell the full story but all adds to an interesting debate
johnson is good on the ball, no question. its his defending i question, cos thats his bread and butter and i felt wewas not near as good as he was in the previous games. I think opta stats are on lfc website so it'll be interesting to comapre him and lucas, perhaps a new article to contribute to dabte in there...
Wondering... after witnessing the performances of Johnson and Enrique lately, we could do this setup and cope quite well in most games. ---------------------Reina------------------------ --------Kelly--------Skrtel---------Agger--------- ---Johnson-----------------------------Enrique--- ----------------Lucas----Adam------------------- ----Henderson------Suarez------Bellamy---------- This way you've got: ----------Kelly-----Agger ---Johnson---------------Enrique Kelly who is playing CB/RB and covering both bases at the same time, same with Agger who can play CB/LB. Leaving Skrtel to hold the sole CB position in the middle, which could also be mixed with Carra in certain games. This means that Kelly can still use his attacking prowess, same with Agger to a heightened extent as he's in a bit more of an attacking role, but with the added backup that Johnson and Enrique will be running those flanks and can track back if needed. That Left wing is reinforced, and the RB looks a bit defensively bare because of Johnson but still very well defended. You've got so much wing play coming from the back there, and a lot of pace, that Henderson and Bellamy who are also quite pacy can quickly get the ball and feed it into the middle. It's good to mix up play, and I think with this formation and players in this position they could really inject some pace into the side for counter-attacks, which we never seem to do but also keep our general style of play.
Don't understand why you're so begrudging with your praise for our players? Charlie Adam regained possession 10 times in the game against Chelsea according to the stats which is an extremely high number for one game. Ball watching? The guy played his heart out and made the pass of the match for the 2nd goal. His corners were unusually poor but the rest of his game was great. As for Glen Johnson, he absolutely won the battle on his side of the pitch. If you compare Johnson like for like with Ashley Cole, with both fullbacks tasked to get forward and provide a threat, then the fact Johnson scored and Chelsea created limited chances says it all. If every game our right side get's 1 more goal than our opponent's right side then we will be doing very well for ourselves. Johnson getting forward and winning us the match is the forward-thinking gamble you take when you play with a modern attacking fullback. If we'd have ground out a draw people would have complained that we'd have been negative!
I don't think we should ever stop thanking god for the presence of pepe reina in our team - if you look around the premiership i think we have the best keeper around - his save against chelsea was extraordinary - my uncle (who was once a goalkeeping coach) told me that not only was the save extraordinary, but reina also got the ball away from danger from the goal line - he explained to me the strength needed to push a ball beyond your post from that range is incredible - had he just blocked the shot (which would have been a great save in itself) a chelsea player would have surely scored from the rebound
I totally agree and I hope he stays around for many years to come. Rarely gets much press but consistently the best keeper in the prem over the last 5 years IMO. I remember the days of James, Westerveld and Dudek crying out for a keeper who commanded his area, could concentrate for the full 90 mins and was calm under pressure. World class save on Sunday and faultless for the rest of the game
reina is more likely to give the players in front of him a rollicking - can't remember dudek ever doing that - reina seems to have that air of authority that we haven't seen from a liverpool goalkeeper for some time
fair play to Dudek he did try and rollock the defence during the 1st half in Instanbul. Trouble is the defence were all trying to rollock each other - so nobody listened.
Just got back from London this afternoon...long weekend spent in South London and Stamford Bridge celebrating mates birthday and the game. Watching it back on tv doesn't do Charlie Adam justice. He was immense. Covered every blade of grass, harried, fought and played well. The whole team played well. The movement of the ball was excellent with no one really hiding but everyone comfortable to receive the ball and then have options. Yeah, we were away and the home team did pile on the pressue but you expect that. They are a pretty strong team. The whole LFC team played well. The LFC crowd once again was in great voice. Out sung the chavs all day. Honorable mentions to Reina, Agger, Johnson, Adams, Lucas, Bellamy and Suarez. Top game.
Dudek had Hyppia and Carragher in front of him - those two were immensely influential players - both properly vocal and excellent organisers. He had precious little reason to do much organising with either of them in front of him. Reina currently has Agger and Skrtel ahead of him, neither of whom is a vocal personality, so of course the job falls to the goalkeeper to organise and cajole the defence.
For what its worth, I have to agree in the most part with MITO. I can see where Dave is coming from, and Adam actually put is a much better performance on Sunday than he had done previously, but he is still not the full package - we should expect more to come (Mea culpa - I didn't want Adam coming to the club, as with having Meireles and Aquilani already here, I couldn't see the point of adding another wage competing for one central midfield slot. Having lost both players, his purchase made sense, but I was concerned about the mistakes Adam used to make playing for Blackpool (Overly ambitious passes losing the ball in the Blackpool third, dwelling too long on the ball, conceding stupid fouls in critical areas) but to his credit, he's a much better player for us than he was for them. His tenacity contributed to the first goal which was good to see, and his pass for the second was excellent and that switch of play was reminiscent of Alonso's ability to spot a pass. With Johnson, again, a well taken goal and good going forward, but I can echo MITO's concerns about his defensive abilities. I think Ze has a good point about considering Johnson in a right wingback or even right midfield role, and harnessing Kelly's superior defensive abilities behind Johnson.
