Yeah I agree but your point about the quality of the opposition is also important. Downing against Prem teams last years very rarely beat a man and tbh i've never seen him do it regularly. But a decent run of games and confidence (which must be cronicly low) might get him into a form where he starts doing it for us. My gut says he's an average player capable of doing the odd good thing - a useful optinion but not a first starter. Like Pennant, Mark Gonzales and others of that ilk.
I know the opposition wasn't great but that doesn't realy matter when you have movement and link up play like we did in the first half, it was fantastic. I know it is only one game but I needed that to get me excited about the upcoming season. Reina - not much to do but did sort of flap at one in the first half. First game back too though. Johnson - Excellent and got a cracking goal. Both full backs had a field day with the space they were given. Skrtel - Did what he needed to and helped keep possession. Agger - Awesome to see him in the line-up, sticks two fingers up to Man City (commentator confirmed he would be cup-tied if we make group stages, I didn't think this was the case). Didn't put a foot wrong and made his usual excellent tackles too. Enrique - Got involved but I expect more from him, especially with the space he had. Shelvey - This lad is getting better and better, I am concerned about the impact of the immenant arrival of Allen though. Lucas - I thought he was a beast last night - god, how I've missed that lad! Gerrard - Awesome, linked up well with Suarez. Best compliment i can give is it was a bit like watching Gerrard and Torres again! Downing - Better, beat his man and got balls into the box, but is that down to the opposition defender? Let's see what he does in the season against better players. Borini - Good goal and worked hard, tried to link up with others but needs time to settle IMO Suarez - I thought Suarez was superb. The front four linked up extremely well Carragher - Not much to say really, kept possession and didn't hoof it (funny 'hoof' chanting though <laugh) Spearing - Again, not much to say, did alright. However, was the commentator on glue? He question who would start between Spearing and Lucas Adam - Same, not much to say, linked play with a few passes but nothing out of the ordinary.
Ultimately I think Shelvey is more suited to Gerrards role and there for wont be so affected by Allen's arrival. They say two quality players for each position. We'll look like this in midfield: --------------------Lucas/Spearing----------------------- ---Gerrard/Shelvey-------------Henderson/Allen----- I really like the look of that. With the Europa league we will play a lot more games this season. Every one will be needed.
Agree with that, poor opposition but it doesn't matter. We played as well as we have in the last 2/3 years and it was good seeing the players play like they did. With Borini you can see why he may be favoured over Carroll, he is super quick, has a bit of flair about him with the ability to do wonderful one touch flicks. Carroll is good at holding up the ball and offers something different...but can't see him playing a major part. Those calling the owners 'scum' should quiet down a bit for now. They have every right to be a bit pessimistic like me, but at least wait for the window to shut and get a few more games under our belt. I hope to go we can play like that in the league.
Borini isn't shy of tracking back either, he was covering a left back a couple of times and often appeared on the edge of the box too. Okay, so it is not the most ideal place for a forward but I like the work ethic. Having him and Suarez will be similar to when Man Utd had Rooney and Tevez together, plenty of movement and effort with defenders not liking defending against them. I try to ignore the moans about the owners. I regularly said prior to them buying the club that i would be over the moon with owners that let the club run from it's own income generation, I just wanted rid of the debts. The only complaint I could possibly have is with the stadium development but even with that, I didn't expect the owners to put their hand in their own pockets, I actually said I wouldn't mind club debt if it was for the stadium. IMO, they are trying to what is best for the club and I couldn't care less if they aren't putting money in from their own pockets, it will stand us in good stead for the long term if we are living within a sustainable means. People also need to remember that, even though FSG is made up of business men, Liverpool Football Club is one of the assets and the only way they stand to make money is if the club are successful.
Shelvey is under no pressure from anyone in my opinion. Its Charlie Adam that is in trouble. There is a difference betwene Shelvey and Adam, Shelvey is the more composed one, he doesn't panic even when he's surrounded by a couple of players, he strokes the ball with ease and he takes no more than two touches which is something Brendan Rodgers looks for. Charlie Adam dawdles a little bit too much for me and thats where the rash challenges come in.
I think Ramirez would join the front three options. ---Downing/Ramirez-----------------------Suarez/Cole---- ----------------------------Borini/Carroll------------------------ I expect Adam to fill in and do a job when needed if he stays. Added depth. I also expect us to sign another attacker (I'd like it to be Walcott).
I don't have concerns that Shelvey will be the one leaving, I sincerely doubt that. My concerns are the impact on his first team chances. IMO, he is ready now to play every week. Fair enough, every player need to deal with competition but with Allen 95% certain to be joining and the slight possibility of Ramirez too, it leaves him fighting for one of three positions with Gerrard, Lucas, Allen, Ramirez, Henderson, Adam and Spearing. I think it is glaringly obvious that the latter two are the weakest two (although Spearing is more defensive minded too) but still, what if they don't leave? Also, what about Suso...? Obviously, this is a good problem to have
I think we will rotate our midfield. Keep every one fresh. Its not about worrying about any ones game chances, its about embracing what we have got.
We have had a lot of managers lately who play midfields against lower team that sit back to much. Hopefully Rodgers will be willing to play Gerrard and Shelvey together. But I'd be cautious doing that against City where we will need to tighten up a bit more.
I agree, in theory it is quite difficult to sit deep when we only really have Lucas and Spearing that are defensive. I want to see Shelvey playing much more, he has really impressed me lately
Great draw for me lived in Edinburgh for a few years so will have a few places for free accomodation happy days
