Liverpool Banter Archive January 25 2016

25 Jan 2016 23:53:31
Neither Randall, smith, ward nor flanno were in the squad for tonight's u21 game which suggests to me all will be involved tomorrow with Randall perhaps playing first half if clyne doesn't make it and flanno the second. Smith and ward will probably be on the bench bogdan and caulker played tonight too. Ojo was the best player on the pitch.

26 Jan 2016 01:39:34
Caulker is cup tied.

25 Jan 2016 23:08:18
I have a question for ed002. do you know is anyone interested in Inaki williams. i just have a feeling he is next big thing and he would be star in premier league has all the attributes. thanks in advace.

{Ed002's Note - Try the European pages. This is the Liverpool page.}

26 Jan 2016 02:57:27
In other words try the European page because liverpool has no interest whatsoever.

25 Jan 2016 23:02:13
Does anyone think someone will come in for benteke before this window closes and if so how much do you think we would recoup.

25 Jan 2016 23:47:11
Benteke will not be sold unless he asks to leave (which he won't) klopp works with footballers to make them better (Benteke has scored more goals this season already than lewandowski and P. E. A did in their first season under klopp) and guess what he worked with them and they because world class (not saying Benteke will follow but if he wants it he will get the chance)

26 Jan 2016 00:26:30
False comparison with Lewandowski and Aubameyang, Sam. Lewandowski didn't get his chance until after Lucas Barrios left the club. He had to wait his chance after coming off the bench in every game in his first season at BVB. Also Lewandowski is very hardworking by nature and got to where he is via hardwork, work ethic, determination and a will to overcome the odds after his father passed. If Benteke was anything like him in terms of all the qualities I listed, he wouldn't be warming the bench right now. As for comparing him with Aubameyang, Benteke was and will never be in his class.

26 Jan 2016 00:48:46
Benteke works his socks off every game. He runs out of box when crosses comes in, and zoom past the last man before the thru pass is played. Dun believe me, watch the replays.

26 Jan 2016 00:54:11
Hard to imagine anyone being overly interested in Benteke at the price we would likely want. Unless something drasticaly changes, I suspect he'll stick around another year and maybe go in 2017 for relative peanuts compared to the ridiculous price we paid.

26 Jan 2016 05:07:52
Klopp was absolutely livid before Lallana's winning goal vs Norwich City.

Go back and watch clips of him sitting and cursing moments before the goal. He's saying something angry and finishes with "Benteke". You can easily read his lips.

Probably because Benteke's needless offside led to the set piece that caused their tying goal in extra time.

25 Jan 2016 21:17:10
Hi eds, just a quick question.
Klipperty has repeatedly stated he has the final say on transfers, so is teixiera a player he truly rates or is it someone that the 'transfer committee' have persuaded him to accept. Really like to know your opinion cheers!

{Ed002's Note - RTP.}

25 Jan 2016 22:22:43
He looks like a Klopp player he's work effect.

25 Jan 2016 20:50:07
Hi eds,

Do you think teixeira apparently telling shakhtar he wants to join Liverpool will have any affect on the transfer at all or is the owner determined not to sell?

Thanks in advance.

{Ed002's Note - Tedious.}

25 Jan 2016 21:17:35
To translate for you the Eds response, RTFP. To assist you I will summarize what has been stated the last few days. The owner is in no need to sell, he has plenty of money, the club are in no need to sell, it has due to owner plenty of money. To further show it has no bearing the Eds have mentioned ( I regurally RTFP) how notoriously difficult the owner is to negotiate with. So essentially unless we offer the amount ( sorry to mention money) supposedly needed to even have the owner answer the phone. Apparently that amount is £38 mill. We are pissing in the wind. I hope that answers the question for you.

25 Jan 2016 22:45:45
Shaktars owner paid £137 million for an apartment at.
One Hyde Park.
I don't think he needs the money. So he's in the driving seat.
Just depends if we're prepared to make an offer that's suitable to him.

25 Jan 2016 19:57:59
I would be happy if the only other business we do is get Ter Steggen from Barca. I highly doubt it but it's the only one I crave. Texeira would be nice and I would be overjoyed but getting Mignolet away from no.1 keeper must be the main concern in my opinion.

25 Jan 2016 20:20:30
I do agree with you natural we need a decent keeper It's been our Achilles heel for a long time now our last quality keeper was Bruce Grobbelaar and if you think about the dross we have had since then James awful westervield awful etc Reina and dudek were solid enough but never world class it's a postition Liverpool have never really addressed properly I was hoping ward would get a run of games otherwise I cannot understand why bring him back from a decent loan spell. Ed001 do you know if Ward will get a chance try him for rest of the season it's the only way to know if he is up to the job
Up the pool.

{Ed001's Note - he should be getting a chance tomorrow.}

25 Jan 2016 20:34:04
One of the eds said Barcelona don't think he is good enough, I know a player that doesn't reach their standards isn't exactly a write off but they're not exactly famed for too goalkeepers in recent years. What's the problem with him, I know he's still young for a goalkeeper, is it just too much work needed to make him the required level?

{Ed002's Note - He did not demonstrate a sustained ability to play at the hisghest level but is their CL pick. And that may be a problem with any bid - but Barcelona has set a price.}

25 Jan 2016 21:39:00
Still don't see how a new keeper changes the defenders allowing free access to the ball at every set piece we face. People can't keep blaming the keeper without understanding that this works both ways, a piss poor defence isn't going to be saved by a world class keeper.

25 Jan 2016 22:25:06
There was an interesting stat the other day
In our last 3 games Out the 9 shots on target 8 were goals

As Klopp says we have being doing well defensively in our set up to restrict opposing teams to very few shots on goal

Problem is when the do get a shot on target it invariably goes in (cough! Mignolet.

25 Jan 2016 22:54:21
London - I agree but keeper is no.1 priority for me. Even a keeper of the same level as Mignolet but can distribute, control and command his box on set pieces would be a help. I do agree, most of our CB's aren't good enough. Lucas isn't consistent enough as CDM. CDM is another position that has troubled us for a number of years, we never really replaced Mascherano in my opinion. We have nobody accomplished in this position, nobody who drops into the hole when our fullbacks bomb forward hence our fullbacks get caught out a bit. I know we can't sort every issue in one window so I would be very happy if we started with GK.

25 Jan 2016 23:11:32
Having played a few seasons with dodgy keepers it real to can affect your game. You always have it in the back of your mind that he might drop it or fumble it, so adjust your game for this. When you have full confidence in a keeper, you duck without thinking when they call, you step out more to challenge headers, as you trust him to command the area in behind you, and you engage players more readily for the same reasons.

25 Jan 2016 19:26:32
Ed002, it's clear the club holds an interest in Texeira and Praet. I'm keen to know who you think represents better business? Praet at about €30m? Or Teixeira at €50m?

Not a problem if you don't want to comment. You're just a fountain of knowledge when it comes to European football!

{Ed002's Note - At €50M I cannot see Teixeira being good business. If it were to be €30M for Praet then it is probably less bad business. If it were less for Praet it would be better business.}

25 Jan 2016 20:32:04
Cheers for your opinion Ed. Do you think Praet could be acquired for less than that then?

{Ed002's Note - Yes EMS. Interest in Anderlecht's Dennis Praet has run hold and cold for a while and the likes of Ajax, Everton, Southampton, Hoffenheim and Dynamo Moscow have moved on in the past year. Both Sevilla and Valencia had offers rejected in the summer whilst Aston Villa were also being kept informed by Anderlecht of any approaches for the player, but there is no way the player will want to move there. Juventus were represented at a couple of games but were, I understand, unconvinced by the player - but I suspect interest will continue knowing that his value might well tumble as his contract is running down. Fiorentina has had several meetings with representatives of the player and Anderlecht - and were seemingly getting to the point where an agreement over a January transfer could be reached but interest in another player has given them an unexpected twist to deal with. Arsenal has again looked at him in recent weeks, once they knew that there would be a January bid from elsewhere, but I am not aware of them taking it any further just yet. I understand that Liverpool are again interested in the Praet, and it is a player Klipperty would like. Praet may well provide more versatility than others as he has the ability to play as a winger as well.}

25 Jan 2016 20:37:51
Cheers Ed. Astonishing how much info you have in that cranium!

25 Jan 2016 21:24:26
He seems to also be fairly proficient in front of goal but i am unsure of his consistency as i do not watch the belgium league. I suspect he would be a distant second choice to texiera who also i believe have the ability to play on the wing.

Both are far too expensive and surprised we are looking at them in this window before offloading players to balance the books.

25 Jan 2016 21:44:15
So is there any chance of us moving for Praet in this window or would it be the summer ed?

Thanks.

{Ed002's Note - I am not going to guess about timescales but I expect Praet will move this month.}

25 Jan 2016 21:46:10
I don't think I've ever seen Praet play haha. Belgian Football is not exactly the best quality.

25 Jan 2016 22:15:10
Hi ed could you say which other player anderlect are dealing with, the one you mentioned in an earlier post, also if prayer does end up in the premiership no matter which team, do you think he has the quality to make it, reading reports he is a bit hit and miss where he is.

{Ed002's Note - Your post is confusing.}

25 Jan 2016 22:53:25
In your previous reply to ems you said anderlect had been dealing with an unexpected twist regarding another player.

{Ed002's Note - No - Fiorentina not Anderlecht. Tello.}

25 Jan 2016 23:04:44
Sorry mate my bad.

{Ed002's Note - No problem. The Tello move is all but complete now.}

25 Jan 2016 23:09:43
I'm not sold on Praet. Teixeira is bang in form and rattling goals in, I'd go for the Brazilian myself.

25 Jan 2016 19:23:47
Strong under 21 team for tonight's game against Spurs. Caulker starts, as does ojo so guess they're not in the squad tomorrow, guess caulkers cup tied though. Randall not in the squad, klopp said Clyne has a knock, may get half a game and flanno the other! Tex also not in the squad might get some minutes!

25 Jan 2016 18:41:31
Eds fellow red, just read loric remy wants to move this week . I would take him on a loan any day . he's mush better then Christian lazy benteke. Worth a punt would be fairly cheap to . any thoughts.

{Ed023's Note - Nah he isn't good enough for me - leave him move to Palace or whoever else comes in for him.}

25 Jan 2016 19:26:48
If benteke i'd like to see us brave it and not buy. I know Ings is out for the season, and origi and Sturridge a few more games, and Sturridge some more probably. But Ings in the few games he did play, deserved a shot, firmino is playing well at the moment, so firmino a few more with origi returning soon is fine.

25 Jan 2016 16:39:47
Just want to give my reasons why we should steer well clear of doing any business with specifically Ukrainians clubs and owners.

Luiz adriano to ac Milan for €8m (£6m)

Henrikh mkh to Dortmund for €23.6m (17.9m) do you remember the amount they wanted from us? Then they went on to accept a much lower offer.

Douglas Costa to Munich for €30m (£22.8) this is the most damning example of them all in my opinion.

Willian to anzhi for €35m (£26.6m) who then goes on to sign for Chelsea at £30m

On the flip side

Fernandinho to man city for £34m (Fernandinho was apparently so desperate to leave he waived off £4m)

Alex teixeria valuation is €50m (£39m) and they have made it clear they will not budge (two offers have now been rejected, £25m and now a £28m bid I believe) .

After konoplyanka shanagans also were Dnipro kept on wanting more money and wanted it up front (yet again, I'd find t interesting of this applies to other clubs outside of England) but then he went on to go for free, we should just not deal with these stubborn corrupt people. It's not the fact that they don't want to sell the players, because I believe that they do want to sell them (look at the return they are making on these players) but want bidding wars and to hold English clubs to ransom, yet apparently it's the way we do deals that offend other clubs. Let's just stay away from that lot.

25 Jan 2016 17:07:45
I'm a bit confused, are you saying clubs shouldn't look at maximize value from their players when they know clubs have more money? Sure I'd love to get Teixeira for less but the clubs don't need the money, they sell because the players want to leave. Yeah it's frustrating but it's a business.

If I was a Shakhtar supporter I'd be expecting them to try and get as much as possible for their best players. Hell Liverpool could learn a lesson or two about selling players for actual money rather than pennies.

25 Jan 2016 17:07:45
I'm a bit confused, are you saying clubs shouldn't look at maximize value from their players when they know clubs have more money? Sure I'd love to get Teixeira for less but the clubs don't need the money, they sell because the players want to leave. Yeah it's frustrating but it's a business.

If I was a Shakhtar supporter I'd be expecting them to try and get as much as possible for their best players. Hell Liverpool could learn a lesson or two about selling players for actual money rather than pennies.

25 Jan 2016 17:23:56
Kman - I hear what you're saying but that's just business. English clubs have the most money so clubs hike up the price a bit because they know they can.

25 Jan 2016 17:27:44
I don't think we sell our best players for pennies (£50m Torres, £65m Suarez £50m sterling), but I'd agree that Ian ayre should learn a thing or two on brockering deals. However £39m is an unrealistic valuation, they know this. They are not trying to get maximum value if they are playing a poker game and trying to get x amount but willing to accept a Lower valuation (even the one submitted) but end up with nothing. What I'm trying to say is 1) why put a valuation on a player publicly if you aren't interested in selling. 2) teixeria will probably end up going for less than what we have offered, in the summer (like the konoplyanka situation) .

If you are saying maximum value is £39m and only that amount, then why have they budged on other valuations when it has come to other clubs outside of Europe, for example Henrikh mkh to Dortmund. Shakhtar are in a below average league where they'll win the title most of the time and they have replacements, what else would they be interested in other than investing small amounts on South American players and selling them for huge sums. That's exactly what they are interested in they just want more money, but then when they don't get it and sell for less than what was offered is that good business?

{Ed002's Note - It wasn't like that it was initially €30M, then €40M and now €50M. I am not sure why the Liverpool supporters are over analyzing this whole thing.}

25 Jan 2016 17:31:22
Not to mention that when selling your stars one by one, the price tends to rise because they become a rarer commodity. When you have tex, costa and MK, you can afford to let one go. Two is dodgy but you can stand it. Your last star player though - they have to pay blood for them!

25 Jan 2016 18:10:19
Douglas Costa been worth every penny one Bayerns best players this season.

25 Jan 2016 18:14:15
Didn`t hear people complain when stuck Chelsea, city and Barcelona for all we could get from them whe we sold Torres, Suarez and Sterling for 50m and over so there`s nothing to see here. This is business, as usual because we do the exact same thing to other clubs. If you want the player, pay the fee or move on.

25 Jan 2016 18:21:39
I think people are getting confused with my original post, the first examples where to show the sort of money other clubs outside of the PL have paid for shaktars top players then when it came to English sides they went for a lot more for arguably the 'lesser players'. Costa has definitely been worth it at Bayern, but my point was why weren't they held at ransom for a player that was arguably better than texiera last season and certainly more touted. Maybe it's a January thing.

25 Jan 2016 18:53:00
Because they pay the fee that is required, IMO. Nobody really knows if they are or aren`t held to ransom so one can`t really say.

25 Jan 2016 18:24:21
Ed002, has his price increases as his performances get better or is it for some other reason?

{Ed002's Note - It is because they have no desire or need tos ell.}

25 Jan 2016 16:30:14
Everywhere reporting just now that we've had a second bid turned down for Texeira.

I suspect this is old news ed and not fresh news from now would you say? Do you no if were still miles away from agreeing or will it most likely be a case of us walking away now that it seems we've been knocked back again?

You did say a deal was doubtfull right from the start and its looking like you will be correct. Again.

Cheers Ed.

{Ed002's Note - They really have no need or desire to sell. The "asking" price went up twice when another side were talking to them and I suspect it could do so again. Others have walked away as they do not see him worth the sort of figures now being asked. If Liverpool can raise the money to pay what is being asked then a deal may be possible this month.}

25 Jan 2016 16:41:58
Cheers Ed

Cant think or see who they can realisticly sell to raise the required funds in the next week.

Playerd out on Loan are deals for the summer i beleive?

25 Jan 2016 16:52:27
If £39m is the only sum that they are willing to accept then I think we should move on. He is not worth that much even though he seems a quality player.

25 Jan 2016 17:02:55
Agree Kman92. 39 million pounds seems to much to me. Rather look elsewhere. Who knows? We could get Reus in the summer for that amount if Klopp works his magic.

25 Jan 2016 17:05:46
reports over the weekend were saying that texireia Alex has agreed personal term for liverpool move transfer also reports saying he has told he wants to leave and others reports saying he is interested in moving to liverpool and now reports saying second bid reject to dosekt ynwa.

25 Jan 2016 17:09:32
Was the team that had the price increase on them twice Chelsea?, are they still hopeful they can complete the deal, surely at some point the club will listen to the player if he wants to move rather than price him out of a move and have him miserable.

{Ed002's Note - Yes it was Chelsea. The club has known for sometime that he wants to leave this year and they have explained they don't want it to be part way through a season - I have explained all of this over and over.}

25 Jan 2016 17:13:28
We do not need to buy in this window and especially not inflated fees for an untested player playing in a weak league.

Use what we have until the summer i say.

25 Jan 2016 17:19:09
Ed will the players comments make no difference to the owners wanting to sell him? They will have a player at there club who doesn't want to be there.

Is there anything additional going on in terms of selling players to help raise funds that you no of?

{Ed002's Note - I have explained the situation and the player knows the situation and he accepts that a move in the summer is more likely at this time - unless a club makes a bid and the Shakhtar owner changes his mind and agrees to sell. Liverpool are not going to have a fire sale to raise money for this.}

25 Jan 2016 19:29:39
I say we move on. this is getting too complicated and IMO, he is not worth the 40m they are asking for.

25 Jan 2016 14:49:57
Scary to think how many genuinly good players we have let slip through our grasp recently for no reason.

And no i'm not talking about all the ronaldo or batistuta bull, true it may be i'm talking about very recently.

While there have been a few i am glad we didn't get, eg mkhitaryan, willian, soldado etc, for every one of them there is a hidden gem that leaves you scratching your head.

The most recent example is of course dele alli - he had talent and was desperate to come to us, how many players can you say that about these days? But clearly giving 140k wages to james milner was a better alternative.

Balotelli over lacazette? Lacazette was well within our grasp before he started putting serious numbers away for lyon, but somehow we ended up getting balotelli?

Konoplyanka on a free? How did we miss this one out when we were willing to pay 12 million before him 2 years before? Clearly it was much more logical to spend 20 million on markovic or 25 million on adam lallana the year before.

Also why didn't we try and move in again for diego costa when we sold suarez, especially when we almost signed him as a replacement the year before?

Why were the club so eager to pay £32 million for benteke, a player who clearly didn't fit and made no sense for us, when bacca was available for half the price?

There are of course many other examples from recent times, lloris, butland, eriksen, bertrand, and players who we somehow didn't pick up on the radar eg payet.

You do just have to wonder who on earth makes the decisions at the club and whether it will get any better under klopp in terms of ins and outs, as well as the money spent on players. The caulker loan is an encouraging sign - he may be awful, but he provides cover for 6 months while we wait to obtain joel matip, who gets a good name as a quality defender, on a free transfer. i'd prefer this to splashing 25 million on a no mark centre back from the portuguese league who everyone reckons is good because they've been linked to united in the daily star a few times.

Time will only tell if our decision making in recruitment gets any better.

25 Jan 2016 15:09:07
I see nothing about Bacca to suggest he would have been a better fit for us than Benteke.
Costa had already rejected our approach once and let's be fair, he's a nasty piece of work.
Couldn't tell you why we passed up on Kono, but I'm not really sure Lacazette was ever a viable option for us, tbh.

25 Jan 2016 15:18:15
Hindsight is a wonderful thing :)

25 Jan 2016 15:23:07
Hindsight is a wonderful thing. I'm sorry but I disagree with a lot of this. You do have some very valid points but a lot of the post seems to be hinging on hindsight and a lot of the players I wouldn't consider comparable.

Delli Ali or James Milner? I don't think it's fair to compare these and other than by using hindsight I don't think the majority of fans would have switched at the time.

Obviously Lacazette would have been a way better signing than Balotelli but who wouldn't? I don't think he was attainable at the time.

Kono for 12m may have been better value than Markovic, and even Lallana, but there's a fairly strong chance that he wouldn't have worked out either and you may have him in the list of who we shouldn't have signed then!

We tried for Costa the year before his best year. His profile grew, he attracted the interest of Chelsea and Mourinho and he wanted to go there.

I agree with you that Benteke's style never looked like he would suit but Bacca was not available for half the price. He went for over 20m still and his wages would also be a lot more than half of Benteke's. He is also older. I'd have agreed with you on this if you just said Bacca would have made more sense in the short to medium term but you went in to money which I don't think is valid here.

Lloris - since when have we ever been interested or when did we have a chance to sign him?

Butland - he has come on leaps and bounds this season - this to me is pure hindsight. Yes he was highly regarded but he did not look impressive in the few chances he got before this season.

Eriksen - we didn't really want to be his stepping stone, he may have grown up since but this is one the majority wanted to avoid at the time.

Bertrand - there were arguments over Bertrand the time we were going for Moreno. EMS was mad for him but I don't recall anyone else being as keen. I think Ed002 mentioned him as well.

The last comment about players we somehow didn't pick up on the radar and Payet as your example - we cannot sign everybody.

25 Jan 2016 15:40:37
What is wrong with Willian and mhki?

25 Jan 2016 15:43:14
I stop reading when you mention willian as a player u r glad Liverpool did not get, something is wrong there. R u ok, bro?

25 Jan 2016 15:44:46
I disagree with your point on Wilian, but i respect why you're glad. He was grossly over priced. The most glaring weaknesses in our team are a) wingers b) set piece specialists.

Willian is both of those things. Pace, energy, skill, flair, wicked delivery, great shot from dead ball etc. He has more goals (8) this season than Milner and Lallana combined (7). Our lack of goals from midfield is a major issue and Willian is almost at double figures with half a season to go.

I know a few people will disagree with me (including Ed001) but I think Willian is a good player who'd be a massive improvement on what we have.

25 Jan 2016 15:55:05
Sean, e prob is Spurs manage to sign those we ought to. So we got to look at why we miss out on Dele Ali, Son min heung who are there for taking. Its a structural issue if we keep buying over valued players.

25 Jan 2016 16:02:21
You don't see how bacca would have been a better fit for us, have you seen him this season in an average ac Milan side? Did you watch him the last couple of seasons at Sevilla? He's scored 12 in 24 and 3 assists in all competitions in a team that don't create half as many chances as we do. Bacca is a similar player to Suarez, not as good but very similar, benteke is a slightly better version of balotelli. Bacca would have been a much better fit and would hardly ever be injured as his injury history shows, plus at the price he went for, you have to be blind to think it wasn't a better deal.

No one else would have paid £32.5 m for benteke. We all knew he wasn't going to be the right fit, most people wanted bacca for a reason, even ed1 said he preferred him over benteke at the time.

25 Jan 2016 16:33:54
Goals scored isn't really an indication of how well a player will do for us though. Not like Benteke didn't score plenty of goals in the last 3 seasons, and yeah AC Milan might be a little average compared to before but let's face it mate, so are we.

25 Jan 2016 17:18:29
Leekuanyew, I can agree with you that Spurs have signed some good players in recent seasons alright but I don't think we should be trying to sign everyone. They have also signed plenty of duds (Yedlin, Trippier, Davies, Fernando Fazio (CB), Holtby, Soldado) .

25 Jan 2016 18:08:24
There is no doubt in my mind that for whatever reason, the TC are getting it wrong way too often.
How could they have agreed to pay so much for benteke when some competent scouting wouldve shown what we amateurs can now see- that his style was so different to rodger's style (and now klopps) that he would be a very poor fit?
Has delle alli turned into a genius in 15 games? No, his quality must have been obvious when they watched him last season.
Somehow, that committee are discussing things, and accepting input, and prioritising things, in such a way that they are consistently getting it wrong.
The wrong opinions are ending up being the deciding ones. The wrong criteria are being used to make final decisions too often.
The dynamics of that group are not working right, and for every Firmino or Can, they sign a Benteke, or a milner- good players and decent guys most of them, but not what we need.
I remember when they put accountants in charge of my company's purchasing. instead of listening to the people who knew what products were good value and worked the accountants usually selected suppliers on the cheapest price, and we then got machinery that broke down and wasted days, consumables that fitted the machines badly and held up work repeatedly, and all sorts of other costly problems.
That comittee is making decisions badly, for some reason, and our costly mistakes will happen again until its workings are sorted out.

{Ed001's Note - there is a problem with the scouting department in my opinion, which has not been fixed with the changes.}

25 Jan 2016 18:51:05
Nah willian is no more than a better than average utility player for chelsea who cost about £30 million, maybe more i can't remember. I just don't see what he offers that's so drastically amazing and different from everyone else, he has good delivery and dead balls and that's it. When we were linked with him everyone made out he had a touch of a wizard and would terrorise defences across the country. Sorry but that didn't happen, and if he had joined liverpool we would be wondering what we paid the money for - but since its chelsea and they have money to burn, nobody sees him as a flop.

25 Jan 2016 19:40:34
Then, must have never seen Bacca play, welshboy. He is a beast of a player. Runs all day, pressess, works hard and can still score goals for fun (over 22 last season playing up top on his own and scored twice in the EL final) . i`ve seen him at seville and Milan this season and each time he plays and scores, I am so frustrated with BR`s incompetence at ignoring bacca who was there for the taking and got Benteke who many said doesn`t fit our style. Bacca is an animal nad he was the one many of us here really wanted. i suggest you go watch him closely. He and Firmino behind would have been lethal.

25 Jan 2016 14:25:23
What's the point of recalling ward back just to be on bench when he can play week in week out on loan? I thought the game at Norwich is an opportunity for us to test how he's doing. How poor must Mignolet be playing to be dropped?

25 Jan 2016 14:41:27
Got to allow a little time to train and blend with the squad, if you throw him in, he doesn't know people that well and makes a mistake, mint may be a huge dent to his confidence. Let him resettle, work on a few weaknesses then he should start. He has demonstrated he is a good goalkeeper, I think he may start in the Europa league if eligible. Given that bogdan didn't play against Exeter, I think he's played his last game.

25 Jan 2016 14:42:12
I have to agree with you on this!

25 Jan 2016 14:50:58
He played for Aberdeen in qualifying stages is he cup tied.

{Ed002's Note - Qualifying stages will not cup tie him.}

25 Jan 2016 15:40:55
Hopefully he will be used in the cups and when/ if Migs drops a clanger and costs us points I think he might get a chance.

25 Jan 2016 17:17:20
Should have left him where he was to continue his development.

25 Jan 2016 22:04:41
My only wonder is how long it will take for people to turn on Ward when our defence doesn't improve. Unless we're going to 1) improve the quality of players around the keeper and 2) give someone a run to get into form rather than jumping on them at every opportunity I'd rather see him getting game time where the fans will view him with rose tinted specs, not where they will rip him a new one.

25 Jan 2016 12:41:16
If I remember correctly one of he eds said something about o'driscoll trying to improve player communication in training. Obviously didn't happen but think this is one of our biggest problems!

Lost count of the amount of goals conceded due to lack of communication at the back! Either two players going for the same ball or keeper and defender both going to clear. annoyingly think we could easily have gotten fourth this season if it wasn't for such basic errors costing us to leak goals easily!

25 Jan 2016 19:14:11
I agree, it's almost like no one puts a name on the ball. I'm a big Lucas fan but time and again he gets caught up going for a ball, often a header, and gets in the way of a player running forward to it.
There definately seems to be very little talking on the pitch.

25 Jan 2016 09:31:22
Ed001, Liverpool clearly just want a striker regardless of quality (Long, Pato etc) so could you recommend me? Just been made redundant first thing on a Monday morning so it'd be a real pick me up even if I could just get a Klopp hug out of it haha!

{Ed001's Note - redundant? Sorry to hear that. Hopefully you find something new soon.}

25 Jan 2016 11:47:00
Cheers mate. I've been looking for a month already. Alarm bells started ringing when my boss asked me to train other people on how to do different parts of my job haha. Sly gits! Don't forget to nudge Klopp for me ;)

{Ed002's Note - Sorry this has happened.}

25 Jan 2016 12:08:53
Cheers 002. Might even consider the rodeo clown business!

25 Jan 2016 12:22:45
All the best in your hunt for work EMS maybe a position on the transfer committee at LFC. You could feed us all the info then.
Chin up son
Up the pool.

25 Jan 2016 12:28:34
all best in job search mate, things ain't easy in market the now so hopefully something comes up soon! least you can sit on here all day!

25 Jan 2016 12:37:01
Best of luck with he job search.

Should apply to sky to relate Martin Tyler's monthly stat reports!

25 Jan 2016 12:37:01
Go after that London money EMS and change your name to east london scouser and the picture to big mo.
Hope all goes well in the job search and the redundancy packet was generous.

25 Jan 2016 12:39:55
Ahh no way EMS! I'm sick for you buddy. All you do is keep your head up and keep the faith mate. If you feel stressed out talk to a pal don't bottle it up.

25 Jan 2016 12:53:56
Sorry to hear that EMS. Things will work out fine for ya. Keep the banter going fella.

25 Jan 2016 12:54:47
Cheers lads. The support means a lot.

25 Jan 2016 13:04:33
They didn't look at all the work time spent on this site did they?! Bad news mate, hope you find something soon.

25 Jan 2016 13:08:23
All the best EMS!

25 Jan 2016 13:19:24
Sure that's what we are here for.

25 Jan 2016 13:31:48
What's your role EMS? Are you a contractor or Perm?

25 Jan 2016 13:33:12
That's such s sly move EMS with regards to showing people the ropes then getting rid of you. Fingers crossed something comes up for you guys.

25 Jan 2016 13:34:24
Sorry to hear that EMS.

Hope all turns out okay in the end.

25 Jan 2016 13:40:46
Adam, why don't you give us an idea of what you do/ what you are looking for, you never know there may be someone on here who could help, just a thought, good luck.

25 Jan 2016 13:43:27
Good luck Mr pms I hope you find something quick all the best from the negative one.

25 Jan 2016 14:01:19
EMS, would you not join the army reserves? I was based at Chilwell, Nottingham when I was in the army. You can get work there and a lot of the guys do work for companies like BT etc who always look for new employees.

Baz.

25 Jan 2016 14:14:41
Best of luck EMS.

25 Jan 2016 14:15:35
21 years old. NVQ lvl 2 in Mechanical Engineering, VRQ level 3 in general Engineering and HNC level 4 in general engineering. 4 years experience in the electronics industry primarily working in design and manufacturing engineer roles.

Any of you have anything going on a permanent basis, give me a shout haha!

25 Jan 2016 14:18:09
Sadly the manufacturing side of the business is moving to China!

25 Jan 2016 14:49:28
Wish you all the best ems. You clearly have a level of cop on which I'm sure you'll already know a lot of people don't have these days so I'm sure you'll be fine buddy! Keep the head up and let us know how it goes anyway! Wish could offer something better but unless you fancy becoming an east Dublin red I doubt it!

25 Jan 2016 15:24:20
I could give you the details for the company I work for if you like, we have a large ME sector and have offices all over, but don't really fancy putting details out there for obvious reasons. If there is some way to send a private message or something I'll be happy to.

25 Jan 2016 15:50:26
Good luck EMS! i'm sure your luck will turn and good things will happen!
YNWA.

25 Jan 2016 16:34:00
Hey bet you didn't think you were this popular mate lol.

25 Jan 2016 18:08:23
Hi EMS. Stay positive. Look upon this as a chance to find a better job with a better company. Honestly if I was your age right now with the experience of life I have I would move abroad and try Australia or Far East. Don't confine your search, look out of your comfort zone. Semper Fi. YNWA.

25 Jan 2016 19:11:00
Cheers lads. Would be great btw Stuie bit no worries if you can't share info online buddy.

{Ed033's Note - We have a contact form at the bottom of the page if Stuie wants to send any info to EMS

26 Jan 2016 02:35:14
Hope you find something soon EMS, i know a dude who's bascially is self employed and i think his primary degree might be engineering but he basically makes stuff on CAD for people. I think one time he designed stairs and another time some mechanism, all kinds of stuff. Sure you have most of the skills from the sounds of you're experience, if you don't find anything soon might be worth looking into. He rakes it in mate!

25 Jan 2016 09:56:45
I feel we have enough good defenders to not need to buy any in the coming window, we do need a goalie and a defensive coach like yesterday. Apart from that an actual CDM and an CF for the summer.
Even Lovren has improved.

teams shouldn't change too much every year and we are guilty of that.

25 Jan 2016 10:45:55
We don't have any top quality defenders! In my opinion skirtel is are best and even he divides opinion. I'd keep clyne because he's pretty steady and will get better . But the rest! . Moreno has terrible lacks of concentration and rashness . Sahko and toure are awful with the ball at there feet and look like there treading water when running. Lovren was showing improved form before injury but hasn't been a 20million defender. The one thing I would say you couldn't knock them for effort because they all give 100 percent but if we want to be top 4 contenders and even title contenders . Goalkeeper and defenders are what we are in urgent need of .

25 Jan 2016 11:19:22
I have enough faith in Klopp to know where he stands regarding the Defenders we have. Lovren when fit has been our most consistent back 4 player since Klopp arrived. I honestly believe our failure at set pieces is down to our goalkeeper. A keeper should dominate the play, our keeper doesn't.

25 Jan 2016 11:37:07
Red j spoken like a fab who only watches the game on tv and believes the media. Sakho is very good with the ball at his feet and his passing is improving every game only problem is he has rushed back from injury and isn't playing at his full ability. The fact that he is one of the few players that other teams are interested in should highlight how highly he is thought of.

Moreno is lacks concentration but offers an outlet that we lack on the right as Clyne isn't setting the world alight. Flanno being back will secure that side. I feel Smith will be challenging Moreno since both are poor in the air, go forward but Smith has slightly better ability in regards to defending the cross.

Kolo is a stop gap at the moment and strange to say I'm excited for Lovren to come back as he looked like he was finally finding form.

25 Jan 2016 12:00:10
Red j has been following Liverpool for 25 years home and away and to so many countries . Most away games even pre season games in far away countries . Had my season ticket for 20years so to say I watch it in the telly u couldn't be further from the truth . And if u think sahko is comfortable with the ball at is feet i'd say u must listen to the match on the radio!

25 Jan 2016 12:22:47
What do fans think about sahko with the ball at his feet? JK67 thinks he's very good an I think he's bad . I would be interested to hear what fans think . We no football is about opinions and we could sit and debate all day about who is good . who is bad, who we sign, who we sell, and no 2 people would have the same thoughts ino . But sahko bein very good with the ball his feet has made me think are us so far apart on opinion . I would welcome some reply son the matter .

25 Jan 2016 12:28:58
He is good with the ball at his feet and it is a myth and pointless moaner speculation that he isnt. You couldn't go back through every game he has played for us and even find 3 incidents where he has cost us a goal through his ability in the ball. Its a joke.

25 Jan 2016 12:36:22
I think Sakho is acutually deceptive in that he looks like bamby on ice but how many times has he cost a goal by giving it away. I can't think of one this season. I think he is certainly awkward but so was Peter Crouch. But as far as passing and getting the ball out of defence he isn't actually that bad. I would sat awkward but effective.

25 Jan 2016 12:36:28
Thanks for the reply mate . Maybe it's just me then hahahahahaha . Mite be turning into a old morning fan .

25 Jan 2016 13:22:58
He has long legs and that makes him appear to be clumsy but he is actually very skillful on the ball.

25 Jan 2016 13:23:26
Sorry Red j I didn't mean to cast aspertions on you its just something I am infuriated with at the games. I hear too many occasional fans at the match spout the same line I've heard a hundred times in the media that Sakho is bad with the ball. His size makes him ungainly and he passes with an absolute textbook side foot which looks ridiculous compared to others but is comfortable and accurate.

There was a recent night game may have been Arsenal where he hit one over the top toward the corner flag opposite the scoreboard that was reminiscent of Carragher in the latter stages of his career. If he can remain injury free he will be a very effective defender. However I think he has a problem with Kolo at the moment as he defers to the older man instead of being confident and taking control and that resulted in goals for Norwich.

25 Jan 2016 13:41:14
Sakho, like most of our players on here, gets way overrated. Not trying to sound harsh, it's just the reality.

He needs to do the BASICS well first of all. His problem is he tries to be over elaborate when row-z was the better option.

Unfortunately, there's a mistake waiting to happen with him every game. Not because he's a bad player, it's because his decision making needs to be worked on. It's knowing when and what decision to make at any given moment.

I can only compare him with Agger, if only for the left foot and the ability to pass out from the back. The difference with Agger was, he knew when to take the extra touch, when to drive with the ball or when to do the simple thing. At the moment, Sakho does the difficult 9 times out of 10. He also needs to work on his heading technique.

Other than that, he's a good player. LOL. No, he is a good player but far from the colossus some people make him out to be.

25 Jan 2016 14:04:09
Not a problem JK. I fume myself on the way home from away matches sometimes when a fan is on the phone in talkin pure crap bout how bad someone was ranting how something doesn't work and when they get asked have u been the match they say no couldn't get time of work or somethin along them lines . Ino a lot of people can't go the match wether it bein the cost ( understandable ) or bein in work or other reasons . And ino a lot of people who don't go talk a lot of sense aswell . As I said it's about opinions . Some you agree with and some you don't . Might be me who is seeing things wrong in certain areas hahahahahaha . We, ll agree to disagree on sahko .

25 Jan 2016 15:35:15
He's probably the best defender we have with the ball at his feet but still makes me nervous everytime.

25 Jan 2016 05:40:55
It's nice to see us putting a few in the net, but of course our defending is scary at times. As I see it:
Goal 1: Sakho should have committed to the header.
2: Both Can and Lucas ball watching and neither goes with Naismith.
3: Moreno
4: Caulker looked to be setting to clear with his head, Sakho comes across him and stumbles, neither makes the header.
There are times when teams simply score good goals and there's not much you can do about it, fair enough. But this frailty particularly with high balls is getting ridiculous. It's not like all the crosses and corners coming in are belters, half are just hit and hope. Their 4th goal was about as easy to defend as they come.
What does it take to fix this fellow reds? Carragher as defensive coach for a stint? What about Rafa's favoured zonal marking?

25 Jan 2016 06:17:12
I'll have to watch the goals again but I thought Toure had been deputised to mark Mbokani at corners. For the first goal, Toure had left him after the initial clearing header. Clearly they didn't all get the memo to move out and trap Mbokani offside. Which left Sakho scrambling across to cover him. Suggests they lack the "general" who ensures they move out as one.
2nd and 3rd - agree totally. Yes Naismith ran behind Can but still shouldn't have happened (needs to swivel his head more to be aware of the run behind him and needs his team mates communicating with him so he knows about the run) . And Moreno (shake my head)
4th goal suggest Caulker and Sakho didn't communicate which is somewhat understandable since they haven't played together before but still unprofessional.

25 Jan 2016 07:07:33
Sakho should have taken charge and cleared the ball for their 1st and 4th. He was definitely at fault there.

25 Jan 2016 07:45:15
Sakho looked weak and got bullied for the first and last goal Smith deserves a Chance so does caluker I no chopping and changing never helps but others aren't doing it.

{Ed001's Note - why does Caulker deserve a chance? What has he shown to suggest he is the answer? Perhaps when he folded against us while still on loan at Southampton? Or could it be how well he defended against Norwich, being at least partially at fault for their 4th? The last thing we need is to change for change's sake. Caulker is not good enough, so don't put him in unless we are desperate, or it will just make things worse!}

25 Jan 2016 07:56:56
I think at this stage it's psychological tbh. Commentators yesterday made a similar point but there are a couple of things to note.
1) we conceed more corners than we should and this I'm afraid is down to migs for the large part. First goal yesterday prime example ball in before the goal if migs doesn't flap and punches then Norwich have a throw in 30 yards from goal rather than a corner. For me if you can't defend them don't conceed them.
2) we're nervous. Obvious really that at this stage our confidence in defending these situations must be at 0!
3) other teams are confident. Sending up one extra man for a corner or leaving an extra body hovering around the keeper for scraps. All of this combined makes a huge difference and for me the only way for it to improve is to just keep drilling in the basics for me and hopefully 2-3 games in a row without conceding from these situations will see some confidence re instilled.

25 Jan 2016 09:38:22
I think for the 1st goal at least Sakho is hesitant as it looks like Bassong was going to win the header which he jumped for but just went over his head and to Mbokanis feet in the end.

25 Jan 2016 10:26:52
Haven't posted for ages, great work Ed's keep up the fantastic work.
IMO, personnel wise in defence, we are actually not far off. New defensive systems and managers tactics/ ideas aside, what we still severely lack ever since Carra retired is a real leader (as phil has aluded to), screaming and instilling the fear of god into those around him to get into position and cover the runs of opposition players especially at set pieces. This is obviously one of the reasons Lovren was brought in which currently has not worked out, we also have Sakho who should be doing more in this respect given his role with the French national side and with his experience.
I think even if we had the same players but with at least one with a Carragher, Schmeichel or Terry type temperament and mentality in the mix it would have made a huge difference to the defensive frailties shown over the last few seasons.
Question is, is that something that comes with age and experience, someone with those natural attributes we can buy, or something Klopp can instil in certain individuals we currently have?

25 Jan 2016 09:32:41
Does ilori not deserve a chance first.

25 Jan 2016 00:50:34
So Shaktar want £38m for Teixiera whos 26 and Anderlecht want around £19m for Praet whos 21. Tex for me is the better player but is he really worth double that of Praet. For me no. But i'm not in charge.

25 Jan 2016 03:05:23
I have no interest in Praet. So, that's £19m too much.

People comparing him to Reus are off their rocker.

25 Jan 2016 07:47:01
Tex has a lot of pace that's major plus.

25 Jan 2016 08:31:59
Agree with FORP.

Payet? NO! 😡.

25 Jan 2016 10:23:38
I like the look of Payet, I think he will prove to be a top player for which ever club signs him. If Klopp is to be judged fairly then surely we should let him choose the players he wants.

{Ed002's Note - Payet will sign permanently for West Ham in March or April.}

25 Jan 2016 09:34:03
If we can't get Tex then Tex deserves a chance. Forget praet.

Give our rex a chance.

25 Jan 2016 13:12:05
Ron, prayet and praet are different players.

25 Jan 2016 17:29:30
I agree fencey, they are definately two different players.

24 Jan 2016 23:50:11
If Alex Teixeria signs for us hoping he does would he be cup tied in the europa league or dosent it count now we are in to the knockouts.

{Ed002's Note - Cup tied.}