Who should Liverpool start up front?

In Luis Suarez, Andy Carroll, Dirk Kuyt and Craig Bellamy, Liverpool certainly have a variety of players with contrasting styles and various qualities but with numbers limited and a one striker system sometimes favoured I’m going to take a look at the positives and negatives of potential partnerships, assessing Liverpool’s attacking options with reasons why each striker will be hoping for a place in the starting XI.

Luis Suarez

For me Luis Suarez has to be one of (if not) the first name on the Liverpool team sheet. Suarez is one of the world’s top forwards in my opinion and a nightmare for any opposition defence. With exceptional movement and skill the Uruguayan guarantees to both score and set up goals for the team.

The forward is Liverpool’s top scorer this month with four impressive goals although it is his all round team player that impresses me the most with world class position and movement as well as having the ability to pull of an exceptional pass at times (Bolton).

Whether or not Suarez should play as the more advanced striker or the deeper perhaps dropping out wide more often remains a question when it comes to selecting the first team. Although Suarez seemingly has all the right attributes to play in a deeper role I feel he excels more playing as the front man with a more deep lying and versatile player such as Forlan, Kuyt or Bellamy playing behind him.

Andy Carroll

I think it’s fair to say that Carroll hasn’t had the easiest start to life at Liverpool. With a £35 million price tag there was always going to be huge pressure on the front man.

After a tough start to the season with many fans criticising the form of the front man who has been struggling for goals, they’ll feel slightly more re-assured after a great performance against Wolves in which he did everything but score including seeing his header hit the post.

You can certainly see the positive aspects to Carroll’s game and we could be looking at a player who has already scored a few goals this season had his early goals such as against Sunderland weren’t ruled out, in my opinion unfairly.

Perhaps it would be wise to rotate Carroll and play him against teams that play a certain style, perhaps against those teams with slower defenders.

For me though, if we want to utilise Carroll effectively he should not be played as a lone striker has he is left too isolated on his own and often has little support or anyone to hold the ball up or play to.

Dirk Kuyt

In my opinion the Dutch man needs to play. Whether it is in the place of a midfielder such as Henderson or up front instead of the likes of Carroll. I feel that the Dutch forward is key to our team and offers had work, great movement and effort and I feel that his finishing has improved.

Kuyt is renowned for popping up with key goals and his incredible work ethic so for me if this is coupled with another versatile hard-worker in Suarez then it could great a very good parternship.

The two forwards who are both Dutch speakers showed the foundations of a good partnership between them last season with the two seemingly linking up successfully.

Craig Bellamy

Our deadline day signing that arrived for nothing. Some may see that he offers good back up but I feel that Bellamy could be a very important player in our squad this season.

Already he has shown in the Carling Cup against Brighton that he still has the quality that makes him a top player with some top class movement and passing through out including great movement and a great finish for his goal and an excellent cross-field pass the the second.

Bellamy is a similar player to Luis Suarez in the fact he can also be utilised deeper and offers constant pace and movement for the opposition to deal with but he also showed he could provide a great partner for the Uruguayan with the top linking up very successfully against Brighton.

Conclusion

For me it has to depend on the opposition and circumstances. Although I feel that Dirk Kuyt could be good up front with Suarez I feel he should start on the right wing as he is the best option there with either Bellamy or Carroll starting alongside Suarez.

With Craig Bellamy’s fitness being a slight issue in the past then I can see him and Carroll rotating sensibly through out the season with Carroll offering more of a physical presence and strength to bully weaker defences whilst Suarez and Bellamy offers an exciting and dynamic partnership for the opposition.

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Its a nice problem to have, far better than just having Ngog deputising.

 

Good post from the OP. Bellamy does pick up injuries if managed correctly he will be a good player for us.

 

To be honest, we should be playing our best players regardless of who we are up against. We shouldn't be playing to other teams strengths/weakness - we should be playing to our strengths.

Having said that, Bellamy Kuyt and Suarez should be the 3 players at the top of the pitch.
I don't believe we should be playing Carroll just to give him game time just in a desperate attempt that he improves. We don't play the same game when Carroll plays and we shouldn't compromise just to include him as we could drop points.

Let's play our best players, kill the game and then bring Carroll on in the last 20/30 mins where there will be less pressure on him and with the game dead, he has the best chance to score when the opposition are down and out.

 

Carroll had a good game last Saturday. Anyway, you're all leaving me out of this equation

 

I say play RHC and Dave up front. Hash in goal and Gonzo and myself out wide. Bozz and Ze as CB's, both Lucaaas and LDC as full backs. And of course our captain Bluff CAM. Jonesy as DM. Everyone else can rotate so we ensure we keep a strong bench.


Good post OP.

I would have to agree 100% with your conclusion, I'll be having a closer look at your blog. Thanks