15 Dec 2017 16:19:35
Don't know if Paul Merson is back on the sauce but he reckons we are the only team out of the big teams who would take Jack Wilshere is he having a laugh! Oh and he sees vhim as a replacement for Courtinho.

1.) 15 Dec 2017
15 Dec 2017 16:45:09
He has a point, we are the only ones who stockpile midfielders.

2.) 15 Dec 2017
15 Dec 2017 16:34:59
Sorry if this is harsh but I don’t see it with him. Not only is he massively injury prone I honestly don’t see this superstar level people keep assigning to him. Wouldn’t be within a mile of a genuine top class midfielder for me.

3.) 15 Dec 2017
15 Dec 2017 18:43:22
Jack Wilshere would not make the stands at LFC.

4.) 15 Dec 2017
15 Dec 2017 18:44:56
Ron, suddenly your answers and posts have been a bit snippy and harsh lately towards LFC, the players and Klopp. You are normally the eternal optimist on this site. What's your beef, man?

5.) 15 Dec 2017
15 Dec 2017 18:45:56
The new joe Cole? Lol.

6.) 15 Dec 2017
15 Dec 2017 21:56:46
Sorry lads, I'm massively disillusioned after the team changes for the derby and it will take me a while to get it off my chest.

7.) 16 Dec 2017
15 Dec 2017 23:58:28
Ron, what if you had drawn with Coutinho and Firmino?

8.) 16 Dec 2017
16 Dec 2017 02:46:28
Come on Ron, what happened that game was pretty annoying to say the least, even worse it was because it was vs Everton but, it's history, there's been worse games, got to get on with it mate and hope we learn from it.

9.) 16 Dec 2017
16 Dec 2017 03:29:20
Oh boy, Paul Merson started his Christmas binge early this year.

10.) 16 Dec 2017
16 Dec 2017 08:02:21
Setting myself up for a fall here but I think Ron would be fine with playing our best team and not winning. It's not the result that bothers him it's the not taking it seriously that he has a problem with.

11.) 16 Dec 2017
16 Dec 2017 08:49:56
Putney, that is pure projection. We know Klopp did not take the game seriously. Cos he has feasted on them since he arrived here (3 wins on the bounce) Cou had a knock and Firmino was too tired and both were not fit to start. You may disagree with that BUT neither you nor I are the manager so we don't know the information Klopp and the fitness team and sports scientists had prior to the game, which determines who plays and for how long.

Had he played them and they got injured, you would be fuming and rightly so for Klopp starting them esp. since the rotation policy of late had yielded 13 points out of 15 and a CL KO ticket prior to that? We played Can and Wiji due to illness and injuries at CB at Brighton and won 5-1. Why change something that is working you would asked, right? Had Mane squared the ball or Salah, Lovren and Gomez taken their chances, people would not be complaining. Then, Klopp plays his best team vs WBA and we were actually closer to beating Everton with a "weaker" team than we did vs WBA with our best team. Wow, I thought footie was an exact science.

Frankly, people need to get over this whole "play your best team" vs Everton stuff as you cannot play your best team if some of them are not fit enough to give 100% in a derby. Klopp put a good team out there and why do we know that? They dominated, created chances and bar a fluke pen, they would have won, like they have been prior to the game. On to B'mouth.

12.) 16 Dec 2017
16 Dec 2017 08:52:12
Klopp played the team everyone wanted against West Brom and it was even worse watching Can, Gini and Coutinho stroll around in midfield like they couldn't be bothered. At least Milner, Henderson and Chamberlain worked hard to make things happen against Everton. Football is 90% perspiration and 10% inspiration.

Anyway, that was a week ago now. There are worse things happen in life than drawing a derby game.

13.) 16 Dec 2017
16 Dec 2017 09:48:52
Yea drawing agains't West Brom.

14.) 16 Dec 2017
16 Dec 2017 10:34:01
BRover, the question was why Ron is upset and he has a legitimate reason. You're talking about a lot of what ifs and maybes. The only fact is that Klopp didn't play our strongest team in the Merseyside derby. You may be okay with Klopp doing that but Ron isn't.

My beef is that playing Solanke was a terrible choice for that game, Klopp played right into Allardyce's hands and it's a concern that Klopp showed such poor judgement.

15.) 16 Dec 2017
16 Dec 2017 10:58:07
Putney, I am not referring to Ron's point as he has said that he is upset cos the game was one he and his mates look forward to hence, his disappointment and I can understand that. That is separate from what is actually going on with the team on the pitch, in training, analysis and preparation. What I mentioned regarding the injuries/ tiredness with Cou and Firmino are not what if's. They are facts as Klopp mentioned them. You may choose to ignore all of that cos it does not fit your narrative BUT they are still facts. The team he picked played well enough to win and that is all I care about. All the "best team" is just white noise, IMO.

Regarding Solanke, did Klopp play into the hands of Mark Hughes when he started Solanke and where Solanke had an assist and should have had another one and should have scored in a game we won 3-0? The kid had a good game so what is wrong with Klopp starting him vs Everton coming off the back of a decent showing vs Stoke? Oh and btw, who played Mane thru on goal before he got greedy and fluffed his lines? Solanke.

You think Klopp cares about what the opposition manager thinks and therefore, plans his teams accordingly? He is not that insecure, my friend. Pls, Sam Alardyce is and has always been a clueless manager and you are giving him way too much credit for that. A dead clock is right twice a day does not mean the clock works.

16.) 16 Dec 2017
16 Dec 2017 12:35:28
Sam is extremely skilled at what he does. It’s not actual football, it’s something far far uglier but his job is not to earn trophies. It’s to help a club avoid relegation and there is no better manager out there in my mind who can do it. Short term, he has saved a sinking ship but I feel bad for Everton fans who have to endure a dreadful two seasons of his (ahem) brand of football- as bad as they are, nobody deserves that. As for klopp not playing his strongest team, I respect bringing in Solanke but there was no worse game to start. Perhaps klopp was arrogant enough to believe we’d bowl them over with a “weakened” team. It’s disappointing but hopefully he’ll learn and never do it again. I worry more about Ron- we need someone to remind us it’ll all be alright when it’s all going wrong. Perhaps Harry could step in for the moment with a little positivity?

17.) 16 Dec 2017
16 Dec 2017 13:05:03
Nice one, AOE. I like your post about Fat Scam BUT I just disagree with the "Klopp is arrogant" stuff. Klopp nor LFC are in no position to be arrogant about anything given the crap we have had to deal with for years and arrogance did not make Klopp destroy the mighty Bayern and win the trophies he has won. He is a very honorable and humble man and I love that about him.

Now, back to your post. Look at Brighton. Had he had his CB's, he would have played them instead of Can and Wiji. Had he had them healthy and STILL played Can and Wiji then for sure, he is arrogant. That was not the case at Brighton nor vs Everton.
Klopp played a team that was missing Cou (knock) and Firmino (fatigue) and were not deemed fit enuff to start. That is not arrogance. That is reality. You may disagree with the lineup BUT those were the cards he was dealt. He put out the best team he had available and had no choice but to start Solanke. The manager plays the players he has available to him based on fitness and energy levels, end of. This is not rocket science as all managers do this cos well, that is the hand they are dealt.

The team was good enuff to win the game and the so called "best team" were poor vs WBA so by that standard, he might as well have played the "weak" team vs WBA as they seemed to actually care while the best team did not look bothered esp. in CM.

18.) 16 Dec 2017
16 Dec 2017 16:42:14
Fair enough brover- I should probably state that the word arrogance wasn't meant in a completely negative way- merely confidence in how badly Everton have been- as a manager I think there should be a certain amount of arrogance when making hard decisions. It wasn't a knock on klopp- but playing the team he played was in my view a mistake. These things happen and I hope he learns. I think the frustration for his team selection was in him playing key players for the full 90 against a battered team midweek instead of subbing them for the derby. Again, I hope he learns. I'm very much of the opinion that if they're fit to be on the bench, they're fit to start. I think if you are rotating, it should be two to three players at a time and be clever with substitutions- especially when there's a massive massive game to come.