You know the drill; troll gets you perma banned and report any trolls on here to us.
And something about gif requests........
Here's the ruddy PL table as it stands, if you dare look:
**Pos.**|**Club**|**Pld**|**GD**|**Pts**
:--:|:--:|:--:|:--:|:--:
**4th**|Man Utd|16|+4|32
**5th**|Spurs|17|+8|30
**6th**|**Liverpool**|**17**|**+12**|**28**
**7th**|Brentford|18|+2|26
**8th**|Fulham|17|+2|25
Well that was shit submitting a defeat in the predictions for the first time, anyway as its FA Cup this weekend out next prediction is for Brighton away on 14th January, you can find it [here.](https://www.reddit.com/r/LiverpoolFC/comments/101liok/what_will_be_the_result_of_brighton_vs_liverpool/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf)
if i see one more retard african expert posting the "NuNeZ WaLLpApEr .. MiSSeD CaLLs" comment on any social media i think i'm going to mose my mind.
other then that, shit performance in the first half.
I think there is something wrong with the playing style now.
The team is trying way too much to score desperatley from the first minute dropping the defensive duties and any support of the midfield while staying way too narrow, letting usually one central defender in the back who would always be prone to doing mistakes.
I would like to see the team in a slower peace, it's becoming pathetic to see the same scenario every game, to have 3/4 of the team near opposition's box, they having their team also massed up there, 15 players at least in a 20 meters space with no space to dribble or fasten the tempo, they pushing us on the wings from where there are coming crosses on a headder for our rather short attackers.
I know it’s been repeated so many times, but I fucking hope I never have to see Elliot play RCM ever again. Liability in defence, cripples our attack, no strength or energy to run between both sides of the pitch, doesn’t offer the defence splitting passes we needed.
Might as well have just fucking kept Taki, atleast he showed energy in pressing
Two goals from cheap giveaways in midfield that caught us out of position. Henderson was poor during the Leicester game but he has to start over Elliot. Missing Gini’s engine and ball retention big time
Upcoming PL games:
Brighton away
Chelsea home (will probably have Enzo playing)
Wolves away
Everton home
Newcastle away
.. then Madrid in CL
Oh boy… dark times. We better sign a midfielder at least to help out.
>We better sign a midfielder at least to help out.
We need to sign at least TWO midfielders this window or we'll be playing in the Europa League next season. Though we won't because we're "holding out for Bellingham" before he goes to Madrid or City in the summer.....
For their 2nd goal, Trent/Alisson have the vison of the opponents. Either one of them should had communicate Konate to drop, and fab to mark the player behind. That would free up Trent to defend the far post player.
This is not the 1st time, opponents always overcrowd our far post and the lack of communication in defense is costing us
As much as I hate seeing Nunez wasting chances, he's really the least of our problems, along with Alisson. It's becoming more clear every game how we are lacking physical and atheltic players to play the way we are used to seeing this team play. These players looks gassed and some player really doesnt look to be what you would call a "klopp player".
You can have players like Thiago, whos technical abilities are so far ahead of most players that you would want start him every game, but you need athletic midfielders around him to not get overrun every single game.
We used to run over teams like they didnt know what hit them. Now we are the ones getting run over every single game. Its so evident how a game will go, you can tell from watching the first 5 minutes of the game if we are losing or at best draw.
Is it possible that Klopp burned out last year and it's affecting the rest of the team? Doesn't feel like the team is playing close to the intensity of prior years. Practically every player is seeing poor form. Typically, when that's the case, it's related to the environment and motivation the manager creates. Can't put my finger on it but he doesn't seem to have the same fire of previous years.
Some of the takes on here are outrageous.
So glad it isn’t this negative at the match.
We weren’t good today, but Brentford are a decent side too. Writing off players before even half a season is mental too, and not what we as a club do.
Okay the more I dwell on it the bigger it sits in my mind, where or what is going on with Carvalho? We've started Ox 3 times now and he hasn't even subbed off for him in any of those matches and today Klopp thought it was a good idea to sub Ox off for Curtis?! at like the 80th min when Fabio was available right there on the bench as a designated LW, like huh?!
Tolerate criticism…from an online Reddit forum? You’re just talking shit about a player that will 99.9% never read your criticism. He didn’t even play that bad. He’s creating chances, almost scored a goal, and is breaking up the back line. You’re talking about him like he’s 2014 Iago Aspas.
I think we need to accept reality and send Van Dijk on a rehab session for the rest of the season. He doesn't appear comfortable running or jumping at all. So many goals this season he used to head away he is on the floor watching it sail over his head.
Get Matip and Konate as the starting CBs and then rotate Phillips and Gomez. I'm so tired of any random ball into the box ending up on the floor near the penalty spot.
Also seriously try to re-sign Matip. He's still only 31.
I second this! Theres no intensity on the pitch, we are failing on the outside traps and VVD has certainly less to offer. Dont know how bad Pickford did him. He has not been the same after that horror injury.
Prickford couldve ended his career… Thankfully he didnt, but he deff left a lasting impact to a degree we dont yet know. He’s really not the same he was before that injury
Top 4 is a no-go when all of our streak-starting games show a new collapse. It's not impossible, but it's impossible when every single time we need a streak, we get blown out.
I think Carragher is right in his assessment of Elliott, Jones, and Carvalho. At this moment, they don't seem like Klopp players to me. They're not physical or tenacious enough whilst being too nice and too safe on the ball. I said it the other week, they're more like Rodgers players than Klopp players. Reminds me of Joe Allen, Luis Alberto, Suso etc.
I'm starting to doubt whether the club actually has a plan at all.
Don't get me wrong, I'm super hyped for Gakpo, but is he really what we need now? I don't see how he is going to help us from stopping other teams from walking through our midfield and defence as if they weren't there.
Even if the long term plan is Bellingham in the summer, then what? Do they actually think he's a magical wand that will fix everything? We already know that they have one target every window, and nothing more.
Bellingham is a good player, don't get me wrong, but he's 19. He is hardly going to singlehandedly transform this team.
What is the actual plan here? Because surely they see that the team needs an overhaul and not just one player. And surely see that attack is probably the one position where we actually don't have a super urgent need to strengthen. Yet they go and buy a winger?
what i can see as a short term "plan" is Gakpo playing on the left can give Ox a chance to play at the RCM or play Gakpo as a #10 and do 4321.
Thats now purely what i can see them trying to do but don't know if it will fix anything
Another false dawn after winning the last 2 games. Were all over the place today.
Really need another midfielder otherwise it will be tough to finish top 4.
The World Cup seemed to have affected Nunez's form. He was scoring and in great form late October/early November before the break. Didn't score against Spurs but was a handful. The last few games he's missed so many chances.
True. Villa had a lot of chances in the 2nd half of that game. Alisson kept us in it before we scored the 3rd goal. Were also fairly poor against Leicester.
Not a Liverpool supporter but all this talk of Top 4 DONE… is a bit premature no?? You’re only 4 points off. I know you’ve played a game more than other teams around you but we’re not even half way through the season yet. Plus you’ve signed Gakpo and potentially more signings on the way in JAN.
You’ve still got a fighting chance.
I think it can be done, we just need desperately to get our heads out the sand in these upcoming matches else United and Newcastle are gonna beat us to those 3 & 4th spots
LMFAO I was downvoted last week when I was calling out Nunez and his missed chances and how they would cost us points.
And look at what happened today. Albeit, it wasnt totally his fault but if he could actually fucking finish like we expect him to do (considering the money we paid for him) we would've been in a better position to win this game.
But sure keep praising his "chaos" guys lmfao thats sure going to get us 3 pts. And when he misses crucial chances against Madrid and they wipe us out of the CL (again), keep defending him and his chaos.
And to you lot who actually think Jude would actually choose us over the likes of Madrid and City LMFAOOO I can only laugh
I said it, this team is mentally broken after we choked last year. We need a rebuild.
I got downvoted also for criticizing Nunez. Guy is a donkey. People don’t get it.
He is either offside or scuffs his shots. And people have the gall to compare him to Lewandowski in his early days.
Either way, he is one of ours. So let’s hope he comes through and actually starts hitting the target at least.
Oh dont get me wrong, Keita was 100% at fault for that
But this sub and everyone has accepted what Keita is at this point. An injury prone player who hasnt lived up to his hype and should be on his way out
However, this sub still thinks Nunez has been good this season and goes through mental gymnastics to defend him
Tbh we just don't look like a team anymore, our whole is definitely not as great as the sum of our parts (when it used to be the complete opposite). I've probably been one of the most vocal on this sub about FSG's lack of spending...but the issues we have right now feel a lot deeper than a lack of 1-2 midfielders.
Can people honestly say man for man you'd prefer to have the midfield of Brentford or Leicester over Thiago, Fab and Elliott/Keita? Our midfield is definitely in need of overhaul but our issues definitely feel more systemic.
If Pep is the mastermind behind Klopp's tactics then imo its time for him to go. We've had half a season to improve and yet here we still are; conceding first nearly every game, shit-tier away results and the incapability of winning basically any game convincingly.
We should be getting more out of this squad and if we don't take action soon then before too long it'll be Klopp's job on the line. Either we need a tactical change or at the very least some kind of mental bounce to get rid of these feelings of stagnation and regression which no doubt will be seeping into the squad just as much as it is the fanbase. The mental side is incredibly important in football and we've lost it.
We definitely need to change our shape. I still feel its a 4-3-3 which is highly vulnerable to leaking goals against teams playing with a defensive mindset. Liverpool had a major share of possession but its the team with a defensive shape that waits for set pieces, free kicks, and counters which are easier than proper gameplay
Jude Bellingham would make his career a lot easier by not coming here look at how we wasted world class prime eras in salah vvd Alisson mane etc. We literally throw away every second season because we can’t be arsed to some proper scouting and a find a few different targets for each position and he’ll have to play with 2 different midfielders every single week because of injuries and Klopps inability to cut ties with shit players.
He should do himself a favour and go to Madrid if he can it’s a big club that actually knows how to function as a big club.
We will not get top four. Man utd are well coached and have great individual talent. Newcastle don’t have the individual talent that we do but they are well coached and a hard working side. Injuries have affected us, however, we didn’t invest in our squad at the right time. As much as I want us to go through against Madrid, I just can’t see it happening. It’s going to be a long season :(
I really hate pointing out individual players when so many are at fault. We're not even at the halfway point thankfully so gotta hope we turn it around quickly. Kudos to Robertson today. He showed a lot and wish he started but understand the rest.
So that was a shit game to wake up at 3.30am to watch. Brentford completely deserved the win, as bad as we were, they were really good. At the end of the first half, they were pretty much playing the heavy metal football Klopps Liverpool was once revered for.
It's hard to find positives, but without looking for it, what's the point of me watching the next game or even following the rest of the season. But here goes:
Massive balls on Klopp for finally taking off VVD at half time. That was admittedly well overdue (VVD should've been benched like 8 games ago), but I'm glad he's finally done that and put on Matip. And Matip, IMO, did very well in the second half to show all that we can afford to bench a mainstay like VVD for awhile. This sub for me is also a statement to all the other mainstays like TAA, Salah, Thiago, Fab, even Ali, that their positions are up for grabs. Hopefully this starts to reel in the complacency and inconsistency costing us games.
I didn't think Kostas played terribly to be honest, he was doing his typical lines and also bailed us out a couple of times in the first half. But bringing on Robbo was great - I would like to see him with the armband more often. Definitely more vocal than VVD (especially during the kerfuffle after goal 3).
Nunez played okay, making the right movements and runs. He needs to learn a thing or 10 from Salah though. But I get it, it's hard learning a new language, thrust into the team with high pressure. He didn't ask the club to pay that much for his transfer. I'll just have to keep telling myself he'll come good.
Ox with a goal and 2 starts in a row is good.. he's had an ok game as well I thought.
Harvey needs to be benched for a bit, and midfield needs to be between Fab, Thiago, Hendo, Keita. Cujo and Harvey filling in if/when needed.
I'm gonna keep putting my trust in Klopp to find the right fits, or reconfigure the formation altogether if needed. Would love for us to go back to heavy metal football again though... YNWA
What’s happening is been a long time coming. We’ve got so much right but not improved on what we’ve been getting wrong for so long. People will point to transfers and I agree, however we’re won’t ruthless with those we do have. People want to give Bobby a new contract? No. Thank you very much but with Gakpo in too now we really don’t need to keep older players around on a good wage.
Ox? Keita? Should have been gone a while ago. Still keita has his supporters in this sub.
The most frustrating thing of all is arsenal are even that good yet the season City shit the bed we’ve shit it even more so they’ll canter to a title
It would be poor business to not throw money at a starting midfielder now as top 4 looks highly unlikely if we continue in this vein, Real Madrid a strength is their midfield so may as well not turn up if we carry on like this.
We need to be more ruthless on and off the pitch
Exactly. People are complaining about our midfield being old and injury prone but then want us to give Bobby a new contract, we’d just be repeating the same mistake
the big difference is we have under 27 year olds competing for the starting ST position so with the right wage, people are okay having a 31 year old Bobby make a sporadic appearance on the team sheet.
Very different situations, we've been replenishing our front line & Bobby would become a bit-part player, not still being expected to be the main man like our aging midfielders.
We miss a lot right now but a Gini-like midfielder is sorely needed. Physicality, goal scoring potential, can control the game. No, that doesn’t fix it all but it would go a long way to doing so.
As we all know far too well, it hasn't been the greatest season for us so far. But even more worryingly, it doesn't seem like this team has the key elements needed to re-start our season and drive us into top 4 contention. Throughout the season all 3 key aspects of attack, midfield and defence have been at best inconsistent and at worst woeful. A lot has been said about our need for new signings and I fully agree that at least 2 new midfielders are needed in the next couple of transfer windows, however for now (as it doesn't look likely that there will be a new signing this January) we need to work with what we have.
Attack: A lot has been said about our lack of potency this season, and particularly about Nunez and his inconsistent finishing. But for me more worrying is the lack of cohesion that can be seen in our front 3. One of the greatest things about Firmino, Salah and Mane (plus Jota and Diaz later on) was their suitability to any attacking role - Mane being a great example who often transitioned between all three positions within a game. And I just don't see that with this current attack. Salah has been relegated to a much wider, conventional winger role (although when he has got through the middle he has been devastating, such as against Rangers), Firmino isn't the player he used to be and Nunez lacks the basic technical ability to be a true successor to Mane - and this use of him as a focal point means that the role of Salah, Diaz and Firmino is massively diminished. Although the signing of Gakpo is a step in the right direction, and Klopp looks to be building a fantastic, young and talented attack for the future, right now there isn't the threat there has been over the past 5 years - we simply don't look like scoring 2 or even 3 times a game without mistakes from the opposing team (or in the case of Leicester, 2 own goals).
I know it's blasphemy and I'm not suggesting Klopp needs to go at all not even a tiny bit but when he goes Frank is a great option imo.
First coach I can remember since Klopp himself to be doing real miracle work on the pitch on the big stage. His understanding of football is top notch.
I think Frank is a good coach for sure. Potter, Frank, and Howe were the three mid team coaches i think/thought could break it to the bigger teams. Howe looks good so far and Potter needs more time to show for sure. Would be interesting where Frank lands after his gig at Brentford
Agreed, not only that, Brentford have great fans and a culture/politics that closely resembles Liverpool than any other Premier League club. Always had a soft spot for them, theyre never afraid to swing and punch above their weight.
I’m not seeing the hype with Nunez. Crap shooting technique and crap technique in general. The fact so many people think he’ll turn into a goal machine next season is mind blowing
The reason why I think he’ll turn into a goal machine is because he gets a ridiculous amount of chances, the most in the league. He doesn’t get those chances by luck, his natural ability and physique allows him to get those chances. His finishing isn’t convincing at the moment but that’s the one thing that can actually improve with time, positioning and getting into goalscoring opportunities can’t really be improved drastically
Morata, Werner, Lukaku and Welback always had great movement but never became goal machines because their shooting technique was awful. Of course you have the likes of Henry, Suarez, Cavani and Drogba who all missed big chances regularly in their first seasons. Their technically ability were fine but they lacked composure or were generally unlucky.
For every Suarez that turns out well, there’s a Morata that will keep missing chances. I expect Nunez to become a Morata knowing that Nunez struggled to score in his first season at Benfica, massively overperformed his XG in his 2nd season and currently can’t hit a ball cleanly. I hope he’ll prove me wrong.
What worries me is how he seems to be very poor at making short passes and light touches. Worse than Lukaku. Makes me wonder about Gakpo as well, since Darwin was also endorsed by Virg, he might not be a very good talent evaluator lol.
I live in The Netherlands and follow the Eredivisie a bit. Gakpo is a great athlete but I was never convinced of his technical ability. His passing isn’t his best quality and his finishing is inconsistent albeit better than Nunez’. Gakpo can either develop like Mane or become our 2nd Babel.
Must be selective copium. I’ve seen people say Elliot isn’t good enough for Liverpool based of this game while you’d think Nunez will become a world class striker reading the comments. Madness if you ask me.
Literally every habit I was hoping we had left behind in 2022 came back [to haunt us today](https://www.reddit.com/r/LiverpoolFC/comments/100ha4t/brentford_vs_liverpool_pre_match_thread/j2mz041/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf&context=3)
I've been saying this year months now. We only have 4 true midfielders that can effectively play the 4-3-3: Thiago, Naby, Fab, and Henderson. Milner too injury prone. Elliot, Curtis? no.
[https://www.reddit.com/r/LiverpoolFC/comments/y0nwvu/comment/irt4kiw/?utm\_source=share&utm\_medium=web2x&context=3](https://www.reddit.com/r/LiverpoolFC/comments/y0nwvu/comment/irt4kiw/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3)
It’s time to start asking Klopp some serious questions. At this rate I don’t think we’re playing any European football next year. His loyalty to certain players is costing us; he needs to be more ruthless to survive this.
This is not about oil money or state money. This is is about sucking independent of that. 1-2 players is not the solution; it’s a start. We need an overhaul and that includes some in management and coaching.
He's finally subbed off VVD - about 8-10 games too late probably, but I reckon we're about to see his ruthless side now. I.e. the permanent names to the start line should be very worried now. E.g. TAA, Salah, Ali, Darwin..
Lol Ali was tongue in cheek.
On Salah, thats the crux of the issue. He knows it, we know it, there's no one who can fill in for him. All I'm saying is that it's time that mainstays get dropped to remind them it's a privilege to play for the shirt. Or can spin it as a way to rest them too..
We were losing at half time, with a few underperformers. Klopp made changes, including taking off the previously undroppable VVD. He should keep doing that for the next I don't know, 10 games to those who seem undroppable.
I mean I think loyalty is a problem, yes, ie Harv in the midfield. But there are pretty much no other options with other players coming back from injury and tracking their minutes
I don’t see us getting top 4 if we get nobody in. Anyone with a half decent midfield beats us or gets a draw. The first thing you have to do is win the midfield battle especially away from home. Our away record must be horrendous at this stage . Transitions we just can’t defend with the players we have . I think united will push on and get 7 clear of us now . There’s one last place and it’s between us,Chelsea,spurs and newscastle. We’ve got Brighton away next and we know how bad it was last time we played them. They bullied us in the middle. I had some hope of getting top4 20/21 but with the strength of the league and likelihood of newscastle signing more it’s very very hard for me to see us bridging a gap this early when we are this inconsistent. Our deficiencies are glaringly obvious and the blueprint to hurt us is so simple too
This was an awful performance and it's so clear that we need a reset. This is the end of the cycle for this group and we need fresh blood. I'm not trying to be pessimistic but we are carrying so much in the way of deadwood. How are we supposed to compete when there is no reliable squad depth? It's telling that Klopp brought on Curtis Jones, a player whose development has stagnated hugely, we no longer have an Origi or Shaqiri who can make an impact in limited minutes.
I have to say that I am surprised to hear the old 'sell to buy' chestnut again. There are players in this group who we can shift for funds and it does not need to be first teamers. Liverpool could raise £20m for Jones and Gomez quite easily. I suppose we focus on selling members of the first team so much as our academy does not generate significant revenue to help balance the books.
Manchester City sold Bazunu, Lavia and Delap for around £40m which effectively paid for Kalvin Philipps.
Chelsea sold Abraham (£34m), Tomori (£25m) and Guehi (£18m) in 2021 which financed Lukaku.
We raised £17m in 2022 from selling Neco and £22m in 2021 from Wilson, Awoniyi and Grabara.
Liverpool have not maximised the academy to make money. We hold onto players too long and do not sell them when they might bring in a bit of cash. We've had seven years of Klopp and only two homegrown players have established themselves in our first team squad (Jones and TAA). If we are not going to use the academy to provide half decent squad players then why are we not selling them on?
The academy has never really been that good at producing home grown talent in the modern era. Sterling was signed at 15 although I think Rodgers deserves credit for his development. Trent is the only real one to come through since Gerrard/Carragher in terms of top PL talent. I don't really rate Jones at that level, he's shown half decent promise for a season or two but hasn't pushed on. He can have a career in the prem like Martin Kelly I guess
Chelsea/City oil money while known for their ludicrous transfer fees and wage packets, have also invested in a lot of the local community and their own academies. FSG have only worked on Anfield really. They have never really emphasised the academy tbh, their whole philosophy is overseas under 25 talent and developing them which worked to some extent, but now is becoming more redundant because we cannot compete with more clubs like Newcastle without balancing the books like you said. Sadly the reality is we would be lucky to get a few million for most of our prospects at the academy - unless we sign one like Dominick Solanke from another establishment and can fleece a bottom table club for 20m lol
Really can’t get my head around us chasing Tchouaméni, not getting him and then not going for another option, it’s like Klopp correctly identified what we needed and then developed amnesia completely forgetting what he was after in the first place and splurged on Nunez.
People need to calm down a little. We've gone from competing to the end in four competitions to mediocre in one season, we can do the reverse if we get some needed transfers and a good pre-season. This season was basically forfeit for what amounts to no good reason, but saying shit like we need three seasons to get back to challenging the title is bollocks.
Additionally, if the last few matches have shown us anything, it is that we need Hendo, in the absence of a newcomer that can fill his role, to be in the midfield. And we need him to be running, not trying to be a useless number 6 sitting deep. He does get a lot of flack, but I think we need him, both as part of the midfield engine and as a vital part of our pressing game. We can't replace him with the likes of Elliott or Fabio because, as they currently are, they only work as luxury players to be added to an already working system. We've seen how badly Elliott suffers when the tactics aren't working.
Also this match made me think I was too harsh on Gini for his sideways passing. It was frustrating, but definitely better than misplacing every fourth pass in the midfield and conceding a counter every 5 minutes.
As silly as it is to say with a CL final and 2 cup wins..we were mediocre last season as well compared to the 2 seasons previous. Rather, the decline was very apparent last season and the obvious issues, with the ineffective high line and a weak midfield, have not been addressed.
we need a complete rebuild across the board right now. our defenders are lacking and there’s no cover from the midfield. outside of Thiago the creativity is bad.
Ox had a decent game today but he’s not reliable for form or health.
Also, it’s a serious problem that Darwin can’t finish. I know folks want to go easy on him and i appreciate certain aspects of his game but he gets opportunity after opportunity. if he puts away even one of his chances last match and today, it’s a different discussion all together. Outside of him though, doesn’t seem like ANYONE is doing well finishing their chances so we’re in the shitter rn.
It seems like Nunez couldn’t hit a barn door with a banjo, I’m not sure how long he can sustain this inability to finish before he needs to be benched. I’m aware Bobby is out but we could really use him over Darwin at the moment.
the story of our season has been that in nearly every game we manage to concede a really stupid goal of the sort that would've been unthinkable in previous years. we were unlucky with the first one, but the way we conceded 0-2 within seconds of getting a massive letoff with the var decision was terrible. i feel bad for elliott as a young player in a situation that doesn't play to his strengths, but losing the ball in your own defensive third on a failed dummy is so poor. virgil and fabinho have a couple seconds to recover when the ball goes out wide, but both are both out of position when the cross comes in, leaving trent and konate 2 on 3. putting several runners down our right and forcing trent to defend crosses in overload situations was exactly how brentford scored 3 against us last year. we certainly need reinforcements in midfield, but in the meantime this group of players should also be able to learn from their mistakes and take care of the basics. same with klopp - don't understand why you wouldn't start the NFT midfield with how the leicester game went
The squad is a number of rebuild years away from competing. This is not a club that can reinvent itself annually with limitless sheikh wealth and remember that the owners are yanks that kneel before the moneyball alter in baseball and they run this club exactly like that. The only way out of this to ensure a competitive club in a couple of years time is to sell Salah to Spain while his value is still near all time high. Use proceeds to buy one or two above average to extraordinary midfielders. If we’re really gutting the fish, could sell Allison as well for insane money given that Kelleher is more than ready to take on tops. Would be an obvious step down but remember this is about reinvesting not about supplementing. There is a young core up front that is potentially vicious if they click so the front line is a fairly solid for a rebuild. Konate is decent and VV or Matip are good as partners. Robbo is fading but Tsimikas is good enough and young. TAA is a defensive liability and is too hot cold. Could liquidate him as well if he continues to decide not to play in his own half. So certainly some decent wings could be had with say Allison or Trent funds. Bench creatures could be recycled like for like for younger versions and keep guys like Hendo and Thiago around for leadership and mentoring. Klopp and more specifically the scouting staff have been exceptional at assessing and bringing the best out of overlooked players….this can happen again but a blowup has to happen to make it so. Bolting on a Jude to this now would be a massive waste. Sign him and tell him straight that the team will be built around him but it will be a couple of years before he sees CL play. The rebuild needs to be this radical or we become Spurs, Palace, Villa or any other perpetual mid table creature.
Yeah let's sell a top 3 GK in the world, replace him with a keeper who has primarily been used in cup competitions (albeit game) get rid of our top assist + scorer, don't sign Jude Bellingham and to top it off sell the best offensive RB in the world who is only 24. Great plan if you support Man United
You’re not too bright if believe that radical change is not required. TAA is not the best offensive RB in the world and even if he was, his inability to play defense is now clear for all the see. Trent lost something the past seasons and it’s to be seen if it’s recoverable. I also said use proceeds to sign Jude and build around him. And yes, selling players when their value is at a maximum is how you play the game when you don’t have infinitely deep ME pockets. Allison and Salah won’t want to be around for a rebuild so send them on their way for max value and buy young studs to replace positional needs.
It's too late to sell Salah. We have him on 400k a week and he's 31 in 5 months. It's not worth selling him for what we would get. Even so look at his assists and goals nobody is going to replicate that in the current market
What Trent offers up front has outweighed his defensive pitfalls for years. He isn't having a great season, but he still can whip in a ball like today for Nunez and change a game. He's 24 and still has years left to improve at the back.
Why sell Allison? We would be bottom half in the table without him. He just turned 30 and can easily be around and world class for a rebuild. GKs can stay at high level into their mid 30s.
We are Liverpool not 2011 Arsenal having to sell their best players to pay off their stadium. This club brings in too much money from global audience to be playing money ball
ill start by saying nothing you say is necessarily wrong (Maybe the only thing is the TAA love)….but I will also say that LFC shouldn’t have to play moneyball but will for as long as FSG owns. So noting this, I’m a rip the dressing off fast kind of guy rather than watch a slow bleed out. Also the club isn’t a play thing for a billionaire who sees value only in the asset and not in the annual profits.
So selling Salah first and foremost removes that long term liability and frees up funds to buy Jude. Jude is far more valuable mid and long term than Salah. And it’s not about immediate replication it’s about longer term thinking. Jude is a 10yr cornerstone….Mo is decent for another 2-3 maybe…and only if he wants to be and his head is in the game….he’s proven hes capable of checking out when he wants. But of course when he’s on, he’s a world beater.
As for Trent, when he was the local lad makes good story, full of piss and vinegar, running anything and everything down while whipping in eye of needle balls, he is what you claim him to be. What he is now however is a young guy who can whip the ball in from time to time and who then looks like a lost child from distances 25yds and in on our side. The chances he can create are far fewer than that chances and goals he’s given up this season and it would be decidedly worse if not for Allison. Maybe his bulk is slowing him down…..not sure. Personally, I’m not of the ilk that thinks we need a r/LB to create and field marshall the game.. thats what strong midfielders are for. So load up the MF with pressing talent, Jude+Thiago+Caicedo and support them with more defensive backs. Trent doesnt fit into that as a defensive liability.
As for Allison…I will go one better….he is the best keeper in the world, by a wide margin imo. But noting that, we don’t need him at this point of a rebuild since he will get shelled and we will get beat. Kelleher has proven himself capable enough and the return on Allison would be immense. Sure keepers stay exceptional for years, but a rebuild takes time and he may not want in on that. I love Allison and frankly it is only because of him that we are top 10….but the best keeper in the world alone can’t win games all of the time.
I know I have an opinion that gets downvotes aplenty but it’s the only way out imo or as long as we’re owned by yanks and not by some emirate prince.
Not trolling. But stating the obvious. Bitter pill to be sure. If not for the oil millions of City, LFC in this golden age does exceptionally well given the budget but this age is over. Need to prepare for the next and unfortunately it takes a few years of pain to get there. Sucks but it’s reality.
we can talk about underinvest in midefield but i wonder.....;how it is possible that Van Dijk, Konaté, Fabinho, all do great with their country and then when they play with Liverpool this season....and no excuses like "we preserve ourselves with a world cup coming".
Now another thing is, at least he tries and i hugely respect his will and mentality but have to say Darwin Nunez is a bust. Not currently the level required.
Anybody who said that we doen't need a new midfielder gotta stop watching Liverpool match.
That 3rd goal when Keita try to f*in dribble 2 player, got caught, and didn't do f* all to even bother tackling or anything.. Get a foul ffs
The real donkey is Naby Keita. What an utter stupid replacement to Gerrard's Number 8
Awful performance like most of our games this season. We’ve never looked convincing once, even when we win, it’s still scruffy and poor. Something has to change, I have no idea what but the players we have fit and at our disposal should be beating that Brentford side
I agree but you'll just get downvoted. Fact is if he played for City or United we would all be laughing our heads off. Ward has been a failure. Did they even scout this guy
Yes. I’m not ready to give up on him permanently. But he’s the easiest drop from the starting 11 for me. What a calamity of a signing so far. Hopefully Gakpo performs and Lucho comes Back so Klopp can sit him until Darwin decides he wants to play football again.
Thank you, wait for the down votes these fans are proper soft from the truth, but give it a few months they will all be on the same boat my friend, nunez would be a great supper sub with the game being tired and his pace making somthing, other than that hes usless.
We're unlucky that this poor season has coincided with Arsenal, Newcastle and Man U all being on the rise, but if they continue to improve then it's only going to get harder to compete for the Top 4.
I'm fine with a rebuild for the second half of the Klopp era, but that only works if we do rebuild.
I wouldn’t say we are unlucky it’s been coming the underinvest in our midfield has been talked about by fans for a couple of season and now we are see the impact of it.
We had plenty of game last season our midfield struggled but we managed to grind out a result this has been coming for a while.
I suppose I mean it's unfortunate that all 3 have come at once- but you're right it was clear that the midfield was a problem that was only going to increase.
Arguably just an influx from an investor of £150m on top of the jude money would sort us for the next few seasons, would get 2-3 ( including Jude ) mids and at least a cb.
Realistically a fresh pair of legs with some leadership would be great, honestly as much shit as people give Hendo without him on the pitch we just lack so much structure.
I’d rather we buy three 40-45m midfielders than spend 130m on Jude tbh. Bennacer, Caiceido and Nunes is all we need, three technically gifted, defensively solid engines in the midfield to give us some sort of control again
I am aware Caiceido will be more than 40-45m though but that still wouldn’t be exceeding 150m in total which is barely anything when you consider how much we’ve spent in the past 5 years
It just highlights the fine margins in the league. A tweak in tactics(or getting found out slightly), a new player or two, etc etc can make the difference between fighting for a Europa League position or for the league. Look at Arsenal from 5th to absolutely flying.
It is quite interesting. I'm glad we finally know the value of Mane and firmino who played as false forward. They gave quite a needed support and boost to our midfield. Hence our midfield always seemed to be more stable and better because of that extra man. Nothing against nunez but I think all these years playing a false forward, I don't get it, why was there a need to change it? Because of which there are gaps in the midfield. And also where is the pressing? The problems are there but how to fix them? Also I personally feel there are too many attackers in the team and hardly any defenders. Trent, Elliot, Salah, nunez, thiago(most of the time), keita, robertson, and ox.
i think the problem with the False 9 approach is not many players are good with it. So its either replace it with a mediocre player (since Mane wanted to leave and Bobby is getting old) or change in style. So we went with Nunez which i don't think was a bad idea. The fault was though didnt replace our midfield so the entire team is collapsing
Nkunku was the option back in the summer to replace Firmino. This tactical problem with losing a false 9 in front of an aging midfield could be seen months ago.
is Nkunku a false 9 though? last i heard he is a good scorer with flair but not a presser type false 9 OP was looking for in Bobby. I'd definitely would have taken Nkunku actually over Darwin despite i support Darwin and believe he will succeed here
Let’s hope Nunez works out for Liverpool! No player transfer is a guarantee to work. But Nkunku appears to be far more dynamic and adaptable than Nunez. He has a better touch and could contribute all round far better than Nunez can.
I don’t think Firmino came to Liverpool being renowned as a presser but had all the ingredients and he became a defining player in that false 9 position.
I would say Nkunku could be our new goal scoring false 9.
Interesting read on [Nkunku](https://www.coachesvoice.com/cv/christopher-nkunku-rb-leipzig/)
Bellingham isn't coming anyway and I'm not saying this to be a downer, but because I genuinely think people exaggerate our chances for sign him. The most common points are that he loves Gerrard and that he somehow might want to be the main man, even with less chance of consistent trophies.
First point is meh, because he's a professional footballer. He is not your average fan and honestly it reminds me of Chelsea fans convincing themselves for a third year in a row that Declan Rice will throw a hissy fit to join them, because once upon a time he was affiliated with Chelsea and idolized Lampard. Second, one day he might want to be the main man and make a Casemiro to United like transfer, but at this point he's been at a trophyless club for three years now and I bet he's hungry to add some silverware to his name soon. There's a reason why so many top players choose Bayern, even though there isn't much personal glory in their achievements, because even without a player like Lewandowski they still run the league. Real is becoming similar as success and trophies with them seem guaranteed.
Anyway, at this point leave aside Bellingham, I'm not sure how appealing we will be for any of the other top targets like Caicedo. People were super anti transfers like Amrabat and Tielemans, but I wouldn't be surprised if they end up our main viable options.
I am reminded today of Mourhino’s comments “the more possession you have the more you can make mistakes. Yea you can try and control better, but you make more mistakes on the ball too. We’ve been suffering from more possessionitus.
I understand the reasoning behind releasing the ratings late but fuck I just want to complain right now
Ali- 6. Was okay I guess, had one great save. But his distribution was uncharacteristically poor today, and he didn’t command his box.
Trent- 5. Fucking showed some balls at least. Some POOR passes. Nothing glaringly wrong though, just a mediocre match. The assist was sensational though.
Virg- 1. For like the 4th time this season, Virgil hits new lows. His worst game in a Liverpool shirt. Diabolical, out at the half. Virgil Van Djimi today.
Ibou- 3, the occasional great piece of defending interspersed between clumsiness, shit passes, and a total lack of presence in the air. Not his brightest day.
Matip- 7, major improvement off the bench. Got forward a lot, to little effect, but at least he was bringing something somewhat dynamic. No defensive issues.
Kostas- 3, was energetic as usual which is nice but was just totally ineffective, and did nothing to stop Brentford’s service on his side. Subbed at the half. Really disappointing from a player who is usually so reliable.
Robbo- 6, much the same story as Matip, just a tiny bit sloppier. Made a big improvement off the bench.
Fabinho- 4, some really decent passes actually and got quite involved on the right side. But was just completely invisible in the midfield. No structure. Completely failed to contribute to breaking down Brentford whatsoever.
Thiago- 4, didn’t show up defensively. Had inventive passes but ultimately didn’t achieve much, and still failed to break down Brentford in spite of his ambition.
Harvey- 4, right energy. Wrong execution. Just aimless play. Really naive game unfortunately.
Naby- 7, needs to start the next 2. Was the only player making any notable, consistent impact. Was fast, incisive, constantly forcing the issue. And above all, he actually gave our midfield some structure.
Mo- 2, holy fuck I almost cried in pain watching Mo today. He was unrecognizable. He was awful. I can’t remember the last time I had such low confidence in Mo.
Darwin- 4, points for trying to force the issue. Covered a lot of ground. But can’t stay inside to save his life and just can’t get a good shot off.
Ox- 5, a weird game. Mostly uninvolved, but when he did get involved he was mostly great. Our best attacker today, and gets the goal. Should’ve probably had another if Mo or Darwin woke up.
Curtis- 5, limited to a cameo but his passing was actually fairly decisive. Was really thrown into a game that was already lost though.
Klopp- 5, a rating saved by the 3 half time subs. His tactic is collapsing, slowly but surely. Subs get a 7, tactics get a 3.
Team- 3, a result that is all too familiar. We needed to capitalize on points dropped by City, Newcastle, Spurs, and Chelsea. So we decided to get stomped by a Toney-less gang of Danish cub scouts.
Defense- 2, shades of 15/16. If the ball left the ground we were fucked, and the only thing that kept us from feeling it last season was Ali and Matip.
Midfield- 4, Houdini.
Attack- 4, we so desperately need Lucho back.
Brentford- 8, Frank masterclass.
Ref- 6, kill me.
-2 on the hot or not.
Travelling crowd gets a P for pain.
Word of the day is whiplash. How did we get here?
You know the drill; troll gets you perma banned and report any trolls on here to us. And something about gif requests........ Here's the ruddy PL table as it stands, if you dare look: **Pos.**|**Club**|**Pld**|**GD**|**Pts** :--:|:--:|:--:|:--:|:--: **4th**|Man Utd|16|+4|32 **5th**|Spurs|17|+8|30 **6th**|**Liverpool**|**17**|**+12**|**28** **7th**|Brentford|18|+2|26 **8th**|Fulham|17|+2|25 Well that was shit submitting a defeat in the predictions for the first time, anyway as its FA Cup this weekend out next prediction is for Brighton away on 14th January, you can find it [here.](https://www.reddit.com/r/LiverpoolFC/comments/101liok/what_will_be_the_result_of_brighton_vs_liverpool/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf)
virg, milner, jones, keita, pls fuck off to al nassr or something, so we get some decent funding, coz fsg are incompetent af, a too miserly
if i see one more retard african expert posting the "NuNeZ WaLLpApEr .. MiSSeD CaLLs" comment on any social media i think i'm going to mose my mind. other then that, shit performance in the first half.
i had darwin nunez as my wallpaper, didn't get any miss calls, just saw him miss sitters
I think there is something wrong with the playing style now. The team is trying way too much to score desperatley from the first minute dropping the defensive duties and any support of the midfield while staying way too narrow, letting usually one central defender in the back who would always be prone to doing mistakes. I would like to see the team in a slower peace, it's becoming pathetic to see the same scenario every game, to have 3/4 of the team near opposition's box, they having their team also massed up there, 15 players at least in a 20 meters space with no space to dribble or fasten the tempo, they pushing us on the wings from where there are coming crosses on a headder for our rather short attackers.
I know it’s been repeated so many times, but I fucking hope I never have to see Elliot play RCM ever again. Liability in defence, cripples our attack, no strength or energy to run between both sides of the pitch, doesn’t offer the defence splitting passes we needed. Might as well have just fucking kept Taki, atleast he showed energy in pressing
My mind is still boggled at how he's getting games in midfield.
Why not invest in proper cb?
Two goals from cheap giveaways in midfield that caught us out of position. Henderson was poor during the Leicester game but he has to start over Elliot. Missing Gini’s engine and ball retention big time
agree, not to mention keita is poor poor, we have big problems in midfield and keita has nothing to bring to the team, he needs to go.
Keita was our best midfielder yesterday, he offers more than Hendo and Elliot
Our best what? The 3rd goal started from his mistake. As a midfielder losing possesion in midfield like that is beyond amateurish
You’re acting like Hendo and Elliot don’t lose possession 20 times a game. That goal is much more konates fault than Keita’s
Upcoming PL games: Brighton away Chelsea home (will probably have Enzo playing) Wolves away Everton home Newcastle away .. then Madrid in CL Oh boy… dark times. We better sign a midfielder at least to help out.
>We better sign a midfielder at least to help out. We need to sign at least TWO midfielders this window or we'll be playing in the Europa League next season. Though we won't because we're "holding out for Bellingham" before he goes to Madrid or City in the summer.....
For their 2nd goal, Trent/Alisson have the vison of the opponents. Either one of them should had communicate Konate to drop, and fab to mark the player behind. That would free up Trent to defend the far post player. This is not the 1st time, opponents always overcrowd our far post and the lack of communication in defense is costing us
As much as I hate seeing Nunez wasting chances, he's really the least of our problems, along with Alisson. It's becoming more clear every game how we are lacking physical and atheltic players to play the way we are used to seeing this team play. These players looks gassed and some player really doesnt look to be what you would call a "klopp player". You can have players like Thiago, whos technical abilities are so far ahead of most players that you would want start him every game, but you need athletic midfielders around him to not get overrun every single game. We used to run over teams like they didnt know what hit them. Now we are the ones getting run over every single game. Its so evident how a game will go, you can tell from watching the first 5 minutes of the game if we are losing or at best draw.
Caicedo…
Konate just isn’t good at playing the offside trap man.
Miserable days
We got tonked
Is it possible that Klopp burned out last year and it's affecting the rest of the team? Doesn't feel like the team is playing close to the intensity of prior years. Practically every player is seeing poor form. Typically, when that's the case, it's related to the environment and motivation the manager creates. Can't put my finger on it but he doesn't seem to have the same fire of previous years.
Same happened to Mourinho
Klopp is still figuring out what his best playing 11 this season.
this game is at 3AM my time, and now im physically and mentally exhausted watching Liverpool plays. Perhaps i need to take a break for a while.
yeah, considering your time zone it's probably a good idea to give it a few months rest
Yea no shame in that. Helped in my mental health
Some of the takes on here are outrageous. So glad it isn’t this negative at the match. We weren’t good today, but Brentford are a decent side too. Writing off players before even half a season is mental too, and not what we as a club do.
What the hell are you even on about?
Okay the more I dwell on it the bigger it sits in my mind, where or what is going on with Carvalho? We've started Ox 3 times now and he hasn't even subbed off for him in any of those matches and today Klopp thought it was a good idea to sub Ox off for Curtis?! at like the 80th min when Fabio was available right there on the bench as a designated LW, like huh?!
He’s a featherweight
I’d still much rather have him on LW compared to Ox and Curtis he can actually do a decent job there
He’d get brushed off the ball every time. What game did he start, City I think? Just look at that one.
People still convincing themselves that Nunez was a good transfer? He’s shite. Shite shite shite. «Agent of chaos» just stop already.
Plastic ass fan , we don’t tear down we support
Plastic? I’ve been supporting LFC since 2007, wouldn’t call that plastic mate. Also players should tolerate criticism, they’re professional athletes.
Tolerate criticism…from an online Reddit forum? You’re just talking shit about a player that will 99.9% never read your criticism. He didn’t even play that bad. He’s creating chances, almost scored a goal, and is breaking up the back line. You’re talking about him like he’s 2014 Iago Aspas.
I think we need to accept reality and send Van Dijk on a rehab session for the rest of the season. He doesn't appear comfortable running or jumping at all. So many goals this season he used to head away he is on the floor watching it sail over his head. Get Matip and Konate as the starting CBs and then rotate Phillips and Gomez. I'm so tired of any random ball into the box ending up on the floor near the penalty spot. Also seriously try to re-sign Matip. He's still only 31.
I second this! Theres no intensity on the pitch, we are failing on the outside traps and VVD has certainly less to offer. Dont know how bad Pickford did him. He has not been the same after that horror injury.
Prickford couldve ended his career… Thankfully he didnt, but he deff left a lasting impact to a degree we dont yet know. He’s really not the same he was before that injury
Top 4 is a no-go when all of our streak-starting games show a new collapse. It's not impossible, but it's impossible when every single time we need a streak, we get blown out.
Time to take a break already from this...
Klopp out 🤣
I’m not mad, just disappointed.
Sorry dad
I think Carragher is right in his assessment of Elliott, Jones, and Carvalho. At this moment, they don't seem like Klopp players to me. They're not physical or tenacious enough whilst being too nice and too safe on the ball. I said it the other week, they're more like Rodgers players than Klopp players. Reminds me of Joe Allen, Luis Alberto, Suso etc.
Elliot needs to play on the wing.
You can play him when Salah does not start.
I'm starting to doubt whether the club actually has a plan at all. Don't get me wrong, I'm super hyped for Gakpo, but is he really what we need now? I don't see how he is going to help us from stopping other teams from walking through our midfield and defence as if they weren't there. Even if the long term plan is Bellingham in the summer, then what? Do they actually think he's a magical wand that will fix everything? We already know that they have one target every window, and nothing more. Bellingham is a good player, don't get me wrong, but he's 19. He is hardly going to singlehandedly transform this team. What is the actual plan here? Because surely they see that the team needs an overhaul and not just one player. And surely see that attack is probably the one position where we actually don't have a super urgent need to strengthen. Yet they go and buy a winger?
what i can see as a short term "plan" is Gakpo playing on the left can give Ox a chance to play at the RCM or play Gakpo as a #10 and do 4321. Thats now purely what i can see them trying to do but don't know if it will fix anything
Another false dawn after winning the last 2 games. Were all over the place today. Really need another midfielder otherwise it will be tough to finish top 4. The World Cup seemed to have affected Nunez's form. He was scoring and in great form late October/early November before the break. Didn't score against Spurs but was a handful. The last few games he's missed so many chances.
Not like we were convincing in either of those wins tbf
True. Villa had a lot of chances in the 2nd half of that game. Alisson kept us in it before we scored the 3rd goal. Were also fairly poor against Leicester.
Not a Liverpool supporter but all this talk of Top 4 DONE… is a bit premature no?? You’re only 4 points off. I know you’ve played a game more than other teams around you but we’re not even half way through the season yet. Plus you’ve signed Gakpo and potentially more signings on the way in JAN. You’ve still got a fighting chance.
Yeah fr lol, they made a bigger comeback last to last season to finish top 4 and i think they were in a worse situation.
I think it can be done, we just need desperately to get our heads out the sand in these upcoming matches else United and Newcastle are gonna beat us to those 3 & 4th spots
when another club fan has more faith in your team than your own fanbase lol
Mate I’ll always be permanently indebted to you guys for beating Spurs in the CLF.
Good comment g
LMFAO I was downvoted last week when I was calling out Nunez and his missed chances and how they would cost us points. And look at what happened today. Albeit, it wasnt totally his fault but if he could actually fucking finish like we expect him to do (considering the money we paid for him) we would've been in a better position to win this game. But sure keep praising his "chaos" guys lmfao thats sure going to get us 3 pts. And when he misses crucial chances against Madrid and they wipe us out of the CL (again), keep defending him and his chaos. And to you lot who actually think Jude would actually choose us over the likes of Madrid and City LMFAOOO I can only laugh I said it, this team is mentally broken after we choked last year. We need a rebuild.
I got downvoted also for criticizing Nunez. Guy is a donkey. People don’t get it. He is either offside or scuffs his shots. And people have the gall to compare him to Lewandowski in his early days. Either way, he is one of ours. So let’s hope he comes through and actually starts hitting the target at least.
congrats, you proved people on reddit wrong!!!!! looks like you feel great about it
I do
We conceded 3 goals and somehow you’ve managed to concentrate most of the blame on our striker
Like I said, it wasn't totally his fault but if he converted that chance in the begining of the match - a lot of things could've been different
How about the mistake Keita made in midfield which directly led to a goal? Weird how you go off on Nunez, but not that.
Oh dont get me wrong, Keita was 100% at fault for that But this sub and everyone has accepted what Keita is at this point. An injury prone player who hasnt lived up to his hype and should be on his way out However, this sub still thinks Nunez has been good this season and goes through mental gymnastics to defend him
The defender made a block on the line, the shot was going in
If that was Haaland or any competent striker, it would've been a goal
Tbh we just don't look like a team anymore, our whole is definitely not as great as the sum of our parts (when it used to be the complete opposite). I've probably been one of the most vocal on this sub about FSG's lack of spending...but the issues we have right now feel a lot deeper than a lack of 1-2 midfielders. Can people honestly say man for man you'd prefer to have the midfield of Brentford or Leicester over Thiago, Fab and Elliott/Keita? Our midfield is definitely in need of overhaul but our issues definitely feel more systemic. If Pep is the mastermind behind Klopp's tactics then imo its time for him to go. We've had half a season to improve and yet here we still are; conceding first nearly every game, shit-tier away results and the incapability of winning basically any game convincingly. We should be getting more out of this squad and if we don't take action soon then before too long it'll be Klopp's job on the line. Either we need a tactical change or at the very least some kind of mental bounce to get rid of these feelings of stagnation and regression which no doubt will be seeping into the squad just as much as it is the fanbase. The mental side is incredibly important in football and we've lost it.
We definitely need to change our shape. I still feel its a 4-3-3 which is highly vulnerable to leaking goals against teams playing with a defensive mindset. Liverpool had a major share of possession but its the team with a defensive shape that waits for set pieces, free kicks, and counters which are easier than proper gameplay
Jude Bellingham would make his career a lot easier by not coming here look at how we wasted world class prime eras in salah vvd Alisson mane etc. We literally throw away every second season because we can’t be arsed to some proper scouting and a find a few different targets for each position and he’ll have to play with 2 different midfielders every single week because of injuries and Klopps inability to cut ties with shit players. He should do himself a favour and go to Madrid if he can it’s a big club that actually knows how to function as a big club.
Fantastic player just not fit for Klopps system
Could be worse lads, we could be spuds supporters 🤣
We’re literally in a worse situation than them
We will not get top four. Man utd are well coached and have great individual talent. Newcastle don’t have the individual talent that we do but they are well coached and a hard working side. Injuries have affected us, however, we didn’t invest in our squad at the right time. As much as I want us to go through against Madrid, I just can’t see it happening. It’s going to be a long season :(
I really hate pointing out individual players when so many are at fault. We're not even at the halfway point thankfully so gotta hope we turn it around quickly. Kudos to Robertson today. He showed a lot and wish he started but understand the rest.
I miss Mane, Origi and Gini.
and a little place in our hearts for Cube
The season we got him might be my favorite season in the past ten or so
So that was a shit game to wake up at 3.30am to watch. Brentford completely deserved the win, as bad as we were, they were really good. At the end of the first half, they were pretty much playing the heavy metal football Klopps Liverpool was once revered for. It's hard to find positives, but without looking for it, what's the point of me watching the next game or even following the rest of the season. But here goes: Massive balls on Klopp for finally taking off VVD at half time. That was admittedly well overdue (VVD should've been benched like 8 games ago), but I'm glad he's finally done that and put on Matip. And Matip, IMO, did very well in the second half to show all that we can afford to bench a mainstay like VVD for awhile. This sub for me is also a statement to all the other mainstays like TAA, Salah, Thiago, Fab, even Ali, that their positions are up for grabs. Hopefully this starts to reel in the complacency and inconsistency costing us games. I didn't think Kostas played terribly to be honest, he was doing his typical lines and also bailed us out a couple of times in the first half. But bringing on Robbo was great - I would like to see him with the armband more often. Definitely more vocal than VVD (especially during the kerfuffle after goal 3). Nunez played okay, making the right movements and runs. He needs to learn a thing or 10 from Salah though. But I get it, it's hard learning a new language, thrust into the team with high pressure. He didn't ask the club to pay that much for his transfer. I'll just have to keep telling myself he'll come good. Ox with a goal and 2 starts in a row is good.. he's had an ok game as well I thought. Harvey needs to be benched for a bit, and midfield needs to be between Fab, Thiago, Hendo, Keita. Cujo and Harvey filling in if/when needed. I'm gonna keep putting my trust in Klopp to find the right fits, or reconfigure the formation altogether if needed. Would love for us to go back to heavy metal football again though... YNWA
What’s happening is been a long time coming. We’ve got so much right but not improved on what we’ve been getting wrong for so long. People will point to transfers and I agree, however we’re won’t ruthless with those we do have. People want to give Bobby a new contract? No. Thank you very much but with Gakpo in too now we really don’t need to keep older players around on a good wage. Ox? Keita? Should have been gone a while ago. Still keita has his supporters in this sub. The most frustrating thing of all is arsenal are even that good yet the season City shit the bed we’ve shit it even more so they’ll canter to a title It would be poor business to not throw money at a starting midfielder now as top 4 looks highly unlikely if we continue in this vein, Real Madrid a strength is their midfield so may as well not turn up if we carry on like this. We need to be more ruthless on and off the pitch
Arsenal has been good for usual EPL standards.. Just that City and us have set the bar so high that they don't look that good in comparison
Exactly. People are complaining about our midfield being old and injury prone but then want us to give Bobby a new contract, we’d just be repeating the same mistake
the big difference is we have under 27 year olds competing for the starting ST position so with the right wage, people are okay having a 31 year old Bobby make a sporadic appearance on the team sheet.
Very different situations, we've been replenishing our front line & Bobby would become a bit-part player, not still being expected to be the main man like our aging midfielders.
We miss a lot right now but a Gini-like midfielder is sorely needed. Physicality, goal scoring potential, can control the game. No, that doesn’t fix it all but it would go a long way to doing so.
Fucking Caicedo is right there…
60mil and FSG will go broke apparently mate. We can’t do that to em
As we all know far too well, it hasn't been the greatest season for us so far. But even more worryingly, it doesn't seem like this team has the key elements needed to re-start our season and drive us into top 4 contention. Throughout the season all 3 key aspects of attack, midfield and defence have been at best inconsistent and at worst woeful. A lot has been said about our need for new signings and I fully agree that at least 2 new midfielders are needed in the next couple of transfer windows, however for now (as it doesn't look likely that there will be a new signing this January) we need to work with what we have. Attack: A lot has been said about our lack of potency this season, and particularly about Nunez and his inconsistent finishing. But for me more worrying is the lack of cohesion that can be seen in our front 3. One of the greatest things about Firmino, Salah and Mane (plus Jota and Diaz later on) was their suitability to any attacking role - Mane being a great example who often transitioned between all three positions within a game. And I just don't see that with this current attack. Salah has been relegated to a much wider, conventional winger role (although when he has got through the middle he has been devastating, such as against Rangers), Firmino isn't the player he used to be and Nunez lacks the basic technical ability to be a true successor to Mane - and this use of him as a focal point means that the role of Salah, Diaz and Firmino is massively diminished. Although the signing of Gakpo is a step in the right direction, and Klopp looks to be building a fantastic, young and talented attack for the future, right now there isn't the threat there has been over the past 5 years - we simply don't look like scoring 2 or even 3 times a game without mistakes from the opposing team (or in the case of Leicester, 2 own goals).
We are shit. I just hope the other teams competing for top four also reflect our level of shitiness so that we qualify for ucl
I know it's blasphemy and I'm not suggesting Klopp needs to go at all not even a tiny bit but when he goes Frank is a great option imo. First coach I can remember since Klopp himself to be doing real miracle work on the pitch on the big stage. His understanding of football is top notch.
Christ I nearly had a heart attack thinking you meant Lampard
Agreed, he carries himself very well too. Seems to have a likeable personality
I think Frank is a good coach for sure. Potter, Frank, and Howe were the three mid team coaches i think/thought could break it to the bigger teams. Howe looks good so far and Potter needs more time to show for sure. Would be interesting where Frank lands after his gig at Brentford
Ahaha thanks for the compliment but no yea keeping Everton out the relegation zone is definitely a miracle atm - Frank Lampard
Thanks but I meant Thomas, not Fat.
Agreed, not only that, Brentford have great fans and a culture/politics that closely resembles Liverpool than any other Premier League club. Always had a soft spot for them, theyre never afraid to swing and punch above their weight.
I never want to see Liverpool lose but if we’re gonna lose to anyone I’ll take Brentford :/ nothing but respect for them.
I’m not seeing the hype with Nunez. Crap shooting technique and crap technique in general. The fact so many people think he’ll turn into a goal machine next season is mind blowing
thats why he was called "Uruguay Andy Carroll", good positioning, poor finishing.
The reason why I think he’ll turn into a goal machine is because he gets a ridiculous amount of chances, the most in the league. He doesn’t get those chances by luck, his natural ability and physique allows him to get those chances. His finishing isn’t convincing at the moment but that’s the one thing that can actually improve with time, positioning and getting into goalscoring opportunities can’t really be improved drastically
Morata, Werner, Lukaku and Welback always had great movement but never became goal machines because their shooting technique was awful. Of course you have the likes of Henry, Suarez, Cavani and Drogba who all missed big chances regularly in their first seasons. Their technically ability were fine but they lacked composure or were generally unlucky. For every Suarez that turns out well, there’s a Morata that will keep missing chances. I expect Nunez to become a Morata knowing that Nunez struggled to score in his first season at Benfica, massively overperformed his XG in his 2nd season and currently can’t hit a ball cleanly. I hope he’ll prove me wrong.
What worries me is how he seems to be very poor at making short passes and light touches. Worse than Lukaku. Makes me wonder about Gakpo as well, since Darwin was also endorsed by Virg, he might not be a very good talent evaluator lol.
I live in The Netherlands and follow the Eredivisie a bit. Gakpo is a great athlete but I was never convinced of his technical ability. His passing isn’t his best quality and his finishing is inconsistent albeit better than Nunez’. Gakpo can either develop like Mane or become our 2nd Babel.
that's what we call ''Copium''. it's blind hope for alot of the fans.
Must be selective copium. I’ve seen people say Elliot isn’t good enough for Liverpool based of this game while you’d think Nunez will become a world class striker reading the comments. Madness if you ask me.
Both of them are dead wood, Elliot cant defend nor pass and plays as a midfielder, Nunez cant finish and plays as a striker. WTF
Literally every habit I was hoping we had left behind in 2022 came back [to haunt us today](https://www.reddit.com/r/LiverpoolFC/comments/100ha4t/brentford_vs_liverpool_pre_match_thread/j2mz041/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf&context=3)
It's the same game half the time watching Liverpool. We are so predictable.
I've been saying this year months now. We only have 4 true midfielders that can effectively play the 4-3-3: Thiago, Naby, Fab, and Henderson. Milner too injury prone. Elliot, Curtis? no. [https://www.reddit.com/r/LiverpoolFC/comments/y0nwvu/comment/irt4kiw/?utm\_source=share&utm\_medium=web2x&context=3](https://www.reddit.com/r/LiverpoolFC/comments/y0nwvu/comment/irt4kiw/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3)
It’s time to start asking Klopp some serious questions. At this rate I don’t think we’re playing any European football next year. His loyalty to certain players is costing us; he needs to be more ruthless to survive this. This is not about oil money or state money. This is is about sucking independent of that. 1-2 players is not the solution; it’s a start. We need an overhaul and that includes some in management and coaching.
He's finally subbed off VVD - about 8-10 games too late probably, but I reckon we're about to see his ruthless side now. I.e. the permanent names to the start line should be very worried now. E.g. TAA, Salah, Ali, Darwin..
Ali lol shut up drop salah for who? Harvey Elliot our only right wing back up who is too small for senior men’s football
Lol Ali was tongue in cheek. On Salah, thats the crux of the issue. He knows it, we know it, there's no one who can fill in for him. All I'm saying is that it's time that mainstays get dropped to remind them it's a privilege to play for the shirt. Or can spin it as a way to rest them too.. We were losing at half time, with a few underperformers. Klopp made changes, including taking off the previously undroppable VVD. He should keep doing that for the next I don't know, 10 games to those who seem undroppable.
You have no midfielders to make any plays to your attackers. Salah is alone in a team game.
I mean I think loyalty is a problem, yes, ie Harv in the midfield. But there are pretty much no other options with other players coming back from injury and tracking their minutes
I don’t see us getting top 4 if we get nobody in. Anyone with a half decent midfield beats us or gets a draw. The first thing you have to do is win the midfield battle especially away from home. Our away record must be horrendous at this stage . Transitions we just can’t defend with the players we have . I think united will push on and get 7 clear of us now . There’s one last place and it’s between us,Chelsea,spurs and newscastle. We’ve got Brighton away next and we know how bad it was last time we played them. They bullied us in the middle. I had some hope of getting top4 20/21 but with the strength of the league and likelihood of newscastle signing more it’s very very hard for me to see us bridging a gap this early when we are this inconsistent. Our deficiencies are glaringly obvious and the blueprint to hurt us is so simple too
What a shitshow
This was an awful performance and it's so clear that we need a reset. This is the end of the cycle for this group and we need fresh blood. I'm not trying to be pessimistic but we are carrying so much in the way of deadwood. How are we supposed to compete when there is no reliable squad depth? It's telling that Klopp brought on Curtis Jones, a player whose development has stagnated hugely, we no longer have an Origi or Shaqiri who can make an impact in limited minutes. I have to say that I am surprised to hear the old 'sell to buy' chestnut again. There are players in this group who we can shift for funds and it does not need to be first teamers. Liverpool could raise £20m for Jones and Gomez quite easily. I suppose we focus on selling members of the first team so much as our academy does not generate significant revenue to help balance the books. Manchester City sold Bazunu, Lavia and Delap for around £40m which effectively paid for Kalvin Philipps. Chelsea sold Abraham (£34m), Tomori (£25m) and Guehi (£18m) in 2021 which financed Lukaku. We raised £17m in 2022 from selling Neco and £22m in 2021 from Wilson, Awoniyi and Grabara. Liverpool have not maximised the academy to make money. We hold onto players too long and do not sell them when they might bring in a bit of cash. We've had seven years of Klopp and only two homegrown players have established themselves in our first team squad (Jones and TAA). If we are not going to use the academy to provide half decent squad players then why are we not selling them on?
The academy has never really been that good at producing home grown talent in the modern era. Sterling was signed at 15 although I think Rodgers deserves credit for his development. Trent is the only real one to come through since Gerrard/Carragher in terms of top PL talent. I don't really rate Jones at that level, he's shown half decent promise for a season or two but hasn't pushed on. He can have a career in the prem like Martin Kelly I guess Chelsea/City oil money while known for their ludicrous transfer fees and wage packets, have also invested in a lot of the local community and their own academies. FSG have only worked on Anfield really. They have never really emphasised the academy tbh, their whole philosophy is overseas under 25 talent and developing them which worked to some extent, but now is becoming more redundant because we cannot compete with more clubs like Newcastle without balancing the books like you said. Sadly the reality is we would be lucky to get a few million for most of our prospects at the academy - unless we sign one like Dominick Solanke from another establishment and can fleece a bottom table club for 20m lol
Sorry bro we dont have EDWARDS at the helms to do the job
Chelsea desperately need tomori and Tammy and desperately need to get rid of lukaku tho
Really can’t get my head around us chasing Tchouaméni, not getting him and then not going for another option, it’s like Klopp correctly identified what we needed and then developed amnesia completely forgetting what he was after in the first place and splurged on Nunez.
Like putting a toddler down to look at a hot wheels car and a Ferrari. But the hot wheels has shiny plastic…
People need to calm down a little. We've gone from competing to the end in four competitions to mediocre in one season, we can do the reverse if we get some needed transfers and a good pre-season. This season was basically forfeit for what amounts to no good reason, but saying shit like we need three seasons to get back to challenging the title is bollocks. Additionally, if the last few matches have shown us anything, it is that we need Hendo, in the absence of a newcomer that can fill his role, to be in the midfield. And we need him to be running, not trying to be a useless number 6 sitting deep. He does get a lot of flack, but I think we need him, both as part of the midfield engine and as a vital part of our pressing game. We can't replace him with the likes of Elliott or Fabio because, as they currently are, they only work as luxury players to be added to an already working system. We've seen how badly Elliott suffers when the tactics aren't working. Also this match made me think I was too harsh on Gini for his sideways passing. It was frustrating, but definitely better than misplacing every fourth pass in the midfield and conceding a counter every 5 minutes.
lol. It's basically our owner is fuckin incompetence that's all
As silly as it is to say with a CL final and 2 cup wins..we were mediocre last season as well compared to the 2 seasons previous. Rather, the decline was very apparent last season and the obvious issues, with the ineffective high line and a weak midfield, have not been addressed.
Mané being in ridiculous form was what carried us in the second half of the season. Diaz also gave us a big boost of energy
It's gone from "we would've won this back in 19/20" to "we'd have got a result back in 15/16" almost so suddenly
we need a complete rebuild across the board right now. our defenders are lacking and there’s no cover from the midfield. outside of Thiago the creativity is bad. Ox had a decent game today but he’s not reliable for form or health. Also, it’s a serious problem that Darwin can’t finish. I know folks want to go easy on him and i appreciate certain aspects of his game but he gets opportunity after opportunity. if he puts away even one of his chances last match and today, it’s a different discussion all together. Outside of him though, doesn’t seem like ANYONE is doing well finishing their chances so we’re in the shitter rn.
It seems like Nunez couldn’t hit a barn door with a banjo, I’m not sure how long he can sustain this inability to finish before he needs to be benched. I’m aware Bobby is out but we could really use him over Darwin at the moment.
the story of our season has been that in nearly every game we manage to concede a really stupid goal of the sort that would've been unthinkable in previous years. we were unlucky with the first one, but the way we conceded 0-2 within seconds of getting a massive letoff with the var decision was terrible. i feel bad for elliott as a young player in a situation that doesn't play to his strengths, but losing the ball in your own defensive third on a failed dummy is so poor. virgil and fabinho have a couple seconds to recover when the ball goes out wide, but both are both out of position when the cross comes in, leaving trent and konate 2 on 3. putting several runners down our right and forcing trent to defend crosses in overload situations was exactly how brentford scored 3 against us last year. we certainly need reinforcements in midfield, but in the meantime this group of players should also be able to learn from their mistakes and take care of the basics. same with klopp - don't understand why you wouldn't start the NFT midfield with how the leicester game went
The squad is a number of rebuild years away from competing. This is not a club that can reinvent itself annually with limitless sheikh wealth and remember that the owners are yanks that kneel before the moneyball alter in baseball and they run this club exactly like that. The only way out of this to ensure a competitive club in a couple of years time is to sell Salah to Spain while his value is still near all time high. Use proceeds to buy one or two above average to extraordinary midfielders. If we’re really gutting the fish, could sell Allison as well for insane money given that Kelleher is more than ready to take on tops. Would be an obvious step down but remember this is about reinvesting not about supplementing. There is a young core up front that is potentially vicious if they click so the front line is a fairly solid for a rebuild. Konate is decent and VV or Matip are good as partners. Robbo is fading but Tsimikas is good enough and young. TAA is a defensive liability and is too hot cold. Could liquidate him as well if he continues to decide not to play in his own half. So certainly some decent wings could be had with say Allison or Trent funds. Bench creatures could be recycled like for like for younger versions and keep guys like Hendo and Thiago around for leadership and mentoring. Klopp and more specifically the scouting staff have been exceptional at assessing and bringing the best out of overlooked players….this can happen again but a blowup has to happen to make it so. Bolting on a Jude to this now would be a massive waste. Sign him and tell him straight that the team will be built around him but it will be a couple of years before he sees CL play. The rebuild needs to be this radical or we become Spurs, Palace, Villa or any other perpetual mid table creature.
Yeah let's sell a top 3 GK in the world, replace him with a keeper who has primarily been used in cup competitions (albeit game) get rid of our top assist + scorer, don't sign Jude Bellingham and to top it off sell the best offensive RB in the world who is only 24. Great plan if you support Man United
You’re not too bright if believe that radical change is not required. TAA is not the best offensive RB in the world and even if he was, his inability to play defense is now clear for all the see. Trent lost something the past seasons and it’s to be seen if it’s recoverable. I also said use proceeds to sign Jude and build around him. And yes, selling players when their value is at a maximum is how you play the game when you don’t have infinitely deep ME pockets. Allison and Salah won’t want to be around for a rebuild so send them on their way for max value and buy young studs to replace positional needs.
It's too late to sell Salah. We have him on 400k a week and he's 31 in 5 months. It's not worth selling him for what we would get. Even so look at his assists and goals nobody is going to replicate that in the current market What Trent offers up front has outweighed his defensive pitfalls for years. He isn't having a great season, but he still can whip in a ball like today for Nunez and change a game. He's 24 and still has years left to improve at the back. Why sell Allison? We would be bottom half in the table without him. He just turned 30 and can easily be around and world class for a rebuild. GKs can stay at high level into their mid 30s. We are Liverpool not 2011 Arsenal having to sell their best players to pay off their stadium. This club brings in too much money from global audience to be playing money ball
ill start by saying nothing you say is necessarily wrong (Maybe the only thing is the TAA love)….but I will also say that LFC shouldn’t have to play moneyball but will for as long as FSG owns. So noting this, I’m a rip the dressing off fast kind of guy rather than watch a slow bleed out. Also the club isn’t a play thing for a billionaire who sees value only in the asset and not in the annual profits. So selling Salah first and foremost removes that long term liability and frees up funds to buy Jude. Jude is far more valuable mid and long term than Salah. And it’s not about immediate replication it’s about longer term thinking. Jude is a 10yr cornerstone….Mo is decent for another 2-3 maybe…and only if he wants to be and his head is in the game….he’s proven hes capable of checking out when he wants. But of course when he’s on, he’s a world beater. As for Trent, when he was the local lad makes good story, full of piss and vinegar, running anything and everything down while whipping in eye of needle balls, he is what you claim him to be. What he is now however is a young guy who can whip the ball in from time to time and who then looks like a lost child from distances 25yds and in on our side. The chances he can create are far fewer than that chances and goals he’s given up this season and it would be decidedly worse if not for Allison. Maybe his bulk is slowing him down…..not sure. Personally, I’m not of the ilk that thinks we need a r/LB to create and field marshall the game.. thats what strong midfielders are for. So load up the MF with pressing talent, Jude+Thiago+Caicedo and support them with more defensive backs. Trent doesnt fit into that as a defensive liability. As for Allison…I will go one better….he is the best keeper in the world, by a wide margin imo. But noting that, we don’t need him at this point of a rebuild since he will get shelled and we will get beat. Kelleher has proven himself capable enough and the return on Allison would be immense. Sure keepers stay exceptional for years, but a rebuild takes time and he may not want in on that. I love Allison and frankly it is only because of him that we are top 10….but the best keeper in the world alone can’t win games all of the time. I know I have an opinion that gets downvotes aplenty but it’s the only way out imo or as long as we’re owned by yanks and not by some emirate prince.
Not trolling. But stating the obvious. Bitter pill to be sure. If not for the oil millions of City, LFC in this golden age does exceptionally well given the budget but this age is over. Need to prepare for the next and unfortunately it takes a few years of pain to get there. Sucks but it’s reality.
No thanks.
we can talk about underinvest in midefield but i wonder.....;how it is possible that Van Dijk, Konaté, Fabinho, all do great with their country and then when they play with Liverpool this season....and no excuses like "we preserve ourselves with a world cup coming". Now another thing is, at least he tries and i hugely respect his will and mentality but have to say Darwin Nunez is a bust. Not currently the level required.
Anybody who said that we doen't need a new midfielder gotta stop watching Liverpool match. That 3rd goal when Keita try to f*in dribble 2 player, got caught, and didn't do f* all to even bother tackling or anything.. Get a foul ffs The real donkey is Naby Keita. What an utter stupid replacement to Gerrard's Number 8
Awful performance like most of our games this season. We’ve never looked convincing once, even when we win, it’s still scruffy and poor. Something has to change, I have no idea what but the players we have fit and at our disposal should be beating that Brentford side
I mean we did win a 9-0 but yeah, it's been pretty dire for the most part.
Anybody going to agree now nunez is a donkey lol?
I agree but you'll just get downvoted. Fact is if he played for City or United we would all be laughing our heads off. Ward has been a failure. Did they even scout this guy
Yep i agree, what ive herd is Klopp took over wards choice and picked nunez.
Yes. I’m not ready to give up on him permanently. But he’s the easiest drop from the starting 11 for me. What a calamity of a signing so far. Hopefully Gakpo performs and Lucho comes Back so Klopp can sit him until Darwin decides he wants to play football again.
Thank you, wait for the down votes these fans are proper soft from the truth, but give it a few months they will all be on the same boat my friend, nunez would be a great supper sub with the game being tired and his pace making somthing, other than that hes usless.
Fuck off.
Explain to me how hes not please
Is Salah a donkey as well then?
Do you think hes a donkey after stated that? truth
We're unlucky that this poor season has coincided with Arsenal, Newcastle and Man U all being on the rise, but if they continue to improve then it's only going to get harder to compete for the Top 4. I'm fine with a rebuild for the second half of the Klopp era, but that only works if we do rebuild.
Money talks bro. But nahh owner decided to playing different games. They more interested in USA sports scene
I wouldn’t say we are unlucky it’s been coming the underinvest in our midfield has been talked about by fans for a couple of season and now we are see the impact of it. We had plenty of game last season our midfield struggled but we managed to grind out a result this has been coming for a while.
I suppose I mean it's unfortunate that all 3 have come at once- but you're right it was clear that the midfield was a problem that was only going to increase.
To put it in perspective we have only signed Thiago for midfield since we won the CL
Which is insanity! So many smart bits of recruitment in every position bar midfield, essentially
Arguably just an influx from an investor of £150m on top of the jude money would sort us for the next few seasons, would get 2-3 ( including Jude ) mids and at least a cb. Realistically a fresh pair of legs with some leadership would be great, honestly as much shit as people give Hendo without him on the pitch we just lack so much structure.
Lmao jude at least 100 millions.. No chance he's going here bro. If the squad and teams not convincing enough
Sack everyone sell everything abort abort
I’d rather we buy three 40-45m midfielders than spend 130m on Jude tbh. Bennacer, Caiceido and Nunes is all we need, three technically gifted, defensively solid engines in the midfield to give us some sort of control again I am aware Caiceido will be more than 40-45m though but that still wouldn’t be exceeding 150m in total which is barely anything when you consider how much we’ve spent in the past 5 years
How did we go from challenging for the quad to this? It's like last season completely killed the lads mentally
Bcos lacked of fund and transfers. Overworked and no good backups
It just highlights the fine margins in the league. A tweak in tactics(or getting found out slightly), a new player or two, etc etc can make the difference between fighting for a Europa League position or for the league. Look at Arsenal from 5th to absolutely flying.
Maybe Buvac was the key the whole time?
We won everything in the game after he left…
Sad days.
VIRGIL VAN DJOKE….RIDE THE FUCKING BENCH.
It is quite interesting. I'm glad we finally know the value of Mane and firmino who played as false forward. They gave quite a needed support and boost to our midfield. Hence our midfield always seemed to be more stable and better because of that extra man. Nothing against nunez but I think all these years playing a false forward, I don't get it, why was there a need to change it? Because of which there are gaps in the midfield. And also where is the pressing? The problems are there but how to fix them? Also I personally feel there are too many attackers in the team and hardly any defenders. Trent, Elliot, Salah, nunez, thiago(most of the time), keita, robertson, and ox.
Scratch elliot and nunez deadwood
i think the problem with the False 9 approach is not many players are good with it. So its either replace it with a mediocre player (since Mane wanted to leave and Bobby is getting old) or change in style. So we went with Nunez which i don't think was a bad idea. The fault was though didnt replace our midfield so the entire team is collapsing
Nkunku was the option back in the summer to replace Firmino. This tactical problem with losing a false 9 in front of an aging midfield could be seen months ago.
is Nkunku a false 9 though? last i heard he is a good scorer with flair but not a presser type false 9 OP was looking for in Bobby. I'd definitely would have taken Nkunku actually over Darwin despite i support Darwin and believe he will succeed here
Let’s hope Nunez works out for Liverpool! No player transfer is a guarantee to work. But Nkunku appears to be far more dynamic and adaptable than Nunez. He has a better touch and could contribute all round far better than Nunez can. I don’t think Firmino came to Liverpool being renowned as a presser but had all the ingredients and he became a defining player in that false 9 position. I would say Nkunku could be our new goal scoring false 9. Interesting read on [Nkunku](https://www.coachesvoice.com/cv/christopher-nkunku-rb-leipzig/)
Bellingham isn't coming anyway and I'm not saying this to be a downer, but because I genuinely think people exaggerate our chances for sign him. The most common points are that he loves Gerrard and that he somehow might want to be the main man, even with less chance of consistent trophies. First point is meh, because he's a professional footballer. He is not your average fan and honestly it reminds me of Chelsea fans convincing themselves for a third year in a row that Declan Rice will throw a hissy fit to join them, because once upon a time he was affiliated with Chelsea and idolized Lampard. Second, one day he might want to be the main man and make a Casemiro to United like transfer, but at this point he's been at a trophyless club for three years now and I bet he's hungry to add some silverware to his name soon. There's a reason why so many top players choose Bayern, even though there isn't much personal glory in their achievements, because even without a player like Lewandowski they still run the league. Real is becoming similar as success and trophies with them seem guaranteed. Anyway, at this point leave aside Bellingham, I'm not sure how appealing we will be for any of the other top targets like Caicedo. People were super anti transfers like Amrabat and Tielemans, but I wouldn't be surprised if they end up our main viable options.
Absolutely. Bellingham is smart man.
Awful, as is expected these days.
I am reminded today of Mourhino’s comments “the more possession you have the more you can make mistakes. Yea you can try and control better, but you make more mistakes on the ball too. We’ve been suffering from more possessionitus.
I understand the reasoning behind releasing the ratings late but fuck I just want to complain right now Ali- 6. Was okay I guess, had one great save. But his distribution was uncharacteristically poor today, and he didn’t command his box. Trent- 5. Fucking showed some balls at least. Some POOR passes. Nothing glaringly wrong though, just a mediocre match. The assist was sensational though. Virg- 1. For like the 4th time this season, Virgil hits new lows. His worst game in a Liverpool shirt. Diabolical, out at the half. Virgil Van Djimi today. Ibou- 3, the occasional great piece of defending interspersed between clumsiness, shit passes, and a total lack of presence in the air. Not his brightest day. Matip- 7, major improvement off the bench. Got forward a lot, to little effect, but at least he was bringing something somewhat dynamic. No defensive issues. Kostas- 3, was energetic as usual which is nice but was just totally ineffective, and did nothing to stop Brentford’s service on his side. Subbed at the half. Really disappointing from a player who is usually so reliable. Robbo- 6, much the same story as Matip, just a tiny bit sloppier. Made a big improvement off the bench. Fabinho- 4, some really decent passes actually and got quite involved on the right side. But was just completely invisible in the midfield. No structure. Completely failed to contribute to breaking down Brentford whatsoever. Thiago- 4, didn’t show up defensively. Had inventive passes but ultimately didn’t achieve much, and still failed to break down Brentford in spite of his ambition. Harvey- 4, right energy. Wrong execution. Just aimless play. Really naive game unfortunately. Naby- 7, needs to start the next 2. Was the only player making any notable, consistent impact. Was fast, incisive, constantly forcing the issue. And above all, he actually gave our midfield some structure. Mo- 2, holy fuck I almost cried in pain watching Mo today. He was unrecognizable. He was awful. I can’t remember the last time I had such low confidence in Mo. Darwin- 4, points for trying to force the issue. Covered a lot of ground. But can’t stay inside to save his life and just can’t get a good shot off. Ox- 5, a weird game. Mostly uninvolved, but when he did get involved he was mostly great. Our best attacker today, and gets the goal. Should’ve probably had another if Mo or Darwin woke up. Curtis- 5, limited to a cameo but his passing was actually fairly decisive. Was really thrown into a game that was already lost though. Klopp- 5, a rating saved by the 3 half time subs. His tactic is collapsing, slowly but surely. Subs get a 7, tactics get a 3. Team- 3, a result that is all too familiar. We needed to capitalize on points dropped by City, Newcastle, Spurs, and Chelsea. So we decided to get stomped by a Toney-less gang of Danish cub scouts. Defense- 2, shades of 15/16. If the ball left the ground we were fucked, and the only thing that kept us from feeling it last season was Ali and Matip. Midfield- 4, Houdini. Attack- 4, we so desperately need Lucho back. Brentford- 8, Frank masterclass. Ref- 6, kill me. -2 on the hot or not. Travelling crowd gets a P for pain. Word of the day is whiplash. How did we get here?