Excellent, cheers. I'm glad someone we've spent money on is actually justifying the deal. Take note Downing, Adam and Henderson arguably. It is really important for Gerrard's career and us scoring that Allen plays well. With him and Lucas breaking up play and keeping the ball moving, gives Gerrard the chances to go forward without having to worry about running back and defending too. To get the best out of Gerrard in his last years, we need to take the strain off him tracking back and attacking, and let him do what he does best - like Chelsea are doing well with Lampard. Obviously this raised the chances that we score by some margin.
Haha fair enough Credit to Shelvey he had a good game, someone said i think rate him when he has good players around him. And that was true. Solid today.
Was so unlucky with that left footed effort as well. 6 inches lower and it was flying into the top corner and winning the game for us.
Shelvey is definatly better than I thought he was/could be. Fair play to him - he has a place in the squad for sure.
Yes. Midfield is locked down. Still think we need an outright quality striker. Defensive is getting a little thin too. We need Coates to step up pretty soon or we will need to go into the market again. I'm a big fan of Kelly though.
Thought I might...lol Dont want the lad to go, as I still think he could improve and offer us something.....probably not this season, but i would hope he gets a season long loan somewhere where he will get game time and create a good impression....He wont get that game time here this season, not with the way Sterling is playing....Technically very gifted and on low wages, there is a hatful we should ship out before him..No point selling him for less than a million now if a succesful loan period could turn him into a 3-5m player within a year.. I know im Im the main member of team Pacheco...lol......I just remember 2009, when all was rosy for LFC and he was Torres future strike partner....Im keeping the faith for now
You aren't the only member I think he is a better option than Downing (Doesn't say much i know) and i still think he is a good impact player or even a starter in some games. If he isn't even going to make the bench then i reckon a loan would be good, like you say get his value up then ship him next summer if he still can't get in the team. I reckon Swansea would be a good fit for him.
I didnt want to speak for you alex, but knew you were with me as a fellow Dani fan.. Swansea would be good especially if Sinclair moves on....other than that I would say Wigan under Martinez or Fulham under Jol for a season would do him good..... Norwich fans would have him on a season long loan in a heartbeat..... I agree he is already better than Downing, Can pass, move, shoot, dribble, turn and usually makes the right decisions..Downing always comes across as a bit one dimensional
I'm also in the Pacheco camp. Out of only 7 appearances (I think 5 in the EL and 3 starts there) he constantly impressed for all levels he's played at. The pecking order should be - Sterling/Assaidi - Sterling/Assaidi (the other one) - Pacheco - Downing - Cole. Another problem is that we play our youngsters around other youngsters, or our B team. Carroll for example got his chance in our second string squad - therefore recieving second rate chances and second rate passes. So hows he going to look first rate? That is how you get a top player out of Sterling, Pacheco, Suso, Morgan. Throw them in with Suarez and Gerrard. Many say they must be protected and bedded in slowly - but that's not how Barca do it. That's not how Real do it, or Milan or Inter. That's not how United do it, or even Chelsea. So you have top talent playing with top players and you get the end product of a developing first teamer. By playing them in the second team you get an end product of a developing second teamer, who will never be a top player. Look at Sterling today. Around our first team he excelled, arguably MOTM with Allen. Pacheco and Suso are the same type. If you're good enough, you're old enough.
Aliens performance is summed up by the fact that his first misplaced pass was in the 80 th minute ( or thereabouts) He keeps everything simple and is always available. Think when Lucas is back up and running and Allen can play further forward his passing around the box will be even more effective. Would like to say a little also on Borini. Some on here are already willing to write him off. I watched the match yesterday and he was overshadowed somewhat by sterling but I then watched the highlights on MOTD and he was involved quite a bit. Should have scored,set Suarez up who should have scored. I think once he's settled in he will be excellent for us. He's only 21.
I think it rivals the 'greatest midfield in the world' of Gerrard, Alonso, Mascherano and Sissoko who were equally as young at the time
I think Sahin can play left back. i believe he's done it in pre-season. I think Johnson is a more than capable understudy anyway. i would wast money on a left back. for me dempsey is a player who scored a lot of goals, scruffy goals, he just likes to put the ball in the back of the net. if we get him for £8M or so i for one would be happy. Sterlings performance yesterday has solved one headache of penertration OH!
Exactly what i thought. I was at Anfield and went away thinking Borini had a poor game, mainly because i was overawed by how quickly Sterling had settled. But Borini showed some neat touches on the edge of the box and some clever movement. I think his strengths are less evident than the searing speed of Sterling.
Shelvey played a few games at left back last season, doesn't mean he is a left back does it? Same goes for Kelly, Carragher, Agger, etc. Having said that, I'd rather see a goalscorer arrive but sincerely doubt that will happen since Rodgers likes the Spanish 4-6-0 formation and therefore prefers movement and interchanging players to a focal point I don't want Dempsey unless Adam is going the other way
Been thinking... And if we push Gerrard forward into the front three -----------------Lucas -----------Allen----------------- --------------------Sahin - -----------------Gerrard --------Sterling----------Suarez That just looks fantastic. Plus we have a great keeper and back 4, we might just make a big push for top 4 this season.
Its not that I don't like Joe Cole, I like him as a footballer, but he offers nothing. The same thing applies to Adam and Spearing, I've nothing against them personally, but they don't bring anything to the table. Thats why it would be in their best interests to leave. I don't want Owen back, he should join Tranmere.
Spot on mate, as much as I was a fan of Rafa, playing youngsters together in the CC is not the way forward....How BR did things yesterday with Coates and Sterling was the way.... Playing youngsters in an experienced setup gives them confidence and brings out their best. Would like to see the same thing happen for Suso and Pacheco.... And im hoping that if they can be humble and give their all in training, they will get their chance
Absolutely. When a player makes a mistake in the second team, it's usually going to look catastrophic because there is no one to salvage the attack. When they make a mistake, since everyone looks poor, each mistake is highlighted. When you play with senior members, they can cover you, they can get you better balls, they can make more chances for you. They will also not be afraid to tell you what to do (Carroll telling Sterling to look for him when he crosses) and you therefore learn. Baptism by fire. Naturally, you can't start them every game so that's the bedding in part - a start every few weeks maybe. Not 15 minutes in the CC. I do like what Rodgers has done with the youth setup, letting Coates, Kelly, and Sterling into the first team really lets them find their comfort zone. One last thing - a lot of authoritarian managers expect a player to be completely behaved in order to give them a chance. I say that sometimes (not often) it has to be the other way. Sterling was cheeky the other day, under Rafa he would never have played again, but Rodgers threw him into the deep end. Now that he has a taste of it, he's going to fight, to be better. It changes the way you act, getting your first start. Mentally mature players will learn from it, and then become more behaved. That's what I think Pacheco needs as well.
