Liverpool Banter Archive August 26 2014

26 Aug 2014 19:24:43
Really disapointing to see how easily people change their tune.

BR may be inexperienced, he may make mistakes but he is a good manager who is impoving all the time.

I don't think we played that well last night and I personally would not have gone for Allen or Moreno, that being said until his error he played really well, and looks a great signing.

At least the defeat has highlighted how much work there is to be done, I personally think we have a great chance of top 4 and if we can settle in the new intake we might challenge.

Sad to see that one defeat is all itbtakes for.some geniuses to say the wheels are coming coming off.

It will be a long season and we will improve as our new players find their feet.


On the plus side the mancs will pay 200 mil for a europa league spot!

U think that shower that just got a thumping by MKD will be in top 10. Pls send me a couple of bags of whatever you are smoking.

The mancs 4-0 against Mk dons puts it in context. The game away to city was always a tough one and being honest I thought if we got a draw we'd be doing ok. We only let ourselves down with mistakes we weren't poor and for once it wasn't poor refereeing!

What did Allen do that was so wrong? There was another midfielder who had a much poorer game.

You think they'll get a Europa spot, Kobi?

Allen was our best player last night.

27 Aug 2014 00:34:06
Spot on kobi. we've got a win against a team who beat us at home last season, and a loss where we lost last season, and at a ground where most of the top four will struggle to get a point. good display and result against Spurs and we're laughing. Plus it was great to see Rickie and Markovic come off the bench instead of Aspas and Moses. Swap those two even for Balotelli and Lallana, and you can see how much stronger we are this season.

26 Aug 2014 18:17:27
i agree with others saying we didn't take advantage of our possesion or take chances, that was my point. as for faster cds toure is quick but hia form dipped and sakho? what's going on there? he's first choice for france in the world cup, we paid18million for him, why he isn't first choice I don't know! or is it he wasnt br first choice? as for the rest I think if we had scored we wouldve gone on, but going behind, glaring mistakes by a few players, (worrying) confidence went down. we to bounce back at spurs on saturday, faster players please brendan, come on redmen. ps new song for balotelli? posted yday Ed002 nice answer thanks.

Its not saturday. its sunday 1.30 kick off. a lot of the problems could be solved by going to 4-4-2. balo and sturridge to play as front two, otherwise won't work.

26 Aug 2014 18:16:36
A question for Ed002 if I may. If I remember correctly, You replied to a question yesterday saying a Sakho/Lovren partnership was unlikely (I may be paraphrasing). From the signings we have made and the players that have left (loan or sale), it appears that the club really don't know what our best pairing should be. Clearly, it takes time to form a tight partnership and they must be trying different things in training, but the thought process seems a bit muddled. In your opinion, what would be the best pair at this time?
Thanks in advance.
Nigel

{Ed002's Note - My comment was made based on the club having two natural right sided central defenders in Skrtel and Toure and two naturally left sided central defenders in Lovren and Sakho.

The most likely pairing to me seems Skrtel and Lovren. If that works then I would think that will be what Brendan Rodgers uses as his preferred choice.

Agger and Coates are effectively noise and the club would I am sure be happy to let them go. An issue with Agger might be the price asked and his fitness, but he has been keen to talk to the press to help ease an exit. Coates will likely have to go on loan.}

26 Aug 2014 17:17:26
I think last night showed Rodgers managerial niavety, we must remember in terms of management he is very very early in his career.

I don't agree with the decision to start Moreno. A new signing, AWAY to the champions. He was bound to be nervous and uncohesive with his back line as he hasn't had long with his team mates. Furthermore, he's noted for being primarily an attacking fullback with being weaker at defending. This Man City team has an abundance of attacking talent and break at lighting speed and to me he looked out of position a fair few times. He played fairly well apart from this and his mistake, but rather he made them now than 3 months in to his career. He'll learn.

I would of started Johnson on the left and Manquillo on the right. I know I stated about the new signing before someone points that out but Manquillo has been with us far longer, had a fair amount of time to settle in and has played two games for us. And to be fair, Johnson in his last two games at left back has been a bit better than his dire performance at RB. Just ok.


It's onwards and upwards now. 3 points better of than last season. Markovic is back. He looked good. Lallana tocome, he's perfect for us. No defence will want to play against Sturridge and Mario. Defence will gel better with time. Lambert has looked to make a difference both times after coming on. Our players are so young. We will only get better. Joe Allen? Our MOTM. Hope to see a defence of Manquillo Lovren Sakho Moreo of all fit, with Sterling at the tip of a diamond behind Mario and Sturridge. Bring on spurs I say.

26 Aug 2014 17:47:31
It has come down to pin all the hopes on Ballo.
Football is crazy.

26 Aug 2014 20:04:11
Harry, do you even read any posts before commenting, or just skim through, think you know what the poster is saying and then shoot off a reply?

It is blatantly clear that HullRED mentioned Markovic, Lallana, Lambert, Manquillo and Sakho, as well as Mario, all as players who did not start yesterday who could have an impact on our future games.

Its not like he hid all of these names in anagrams or behind some crazy ass artwork, they're just there, out in the open.

So rather than football being crazy, I think you should look a little closer to home.

26 Aug 2014 20:41:53
Zeddius

Sorry mate, Not to offend the OP. After the Defeat, and with Lallana Injured, it has come down to ballo to rescue.

26 Aug 2014 22:17:12
It's not tho, Harry.

Markovic, Lambert and Manquillo all could come in against Spurs, other than Mario.

Lallana is still out, you're right. But Sakho could also be fit to play.

So that's 4 out of 11 players who *could* start against Spurs and potentially improve us. Oh and let's not forget Balotelli.

26 Aug 2014 16:28:01
Does anyone else think Coutinho should not be an automatic starter away from home, particularly in games against the bigger sides?

He is a top talent but far too inconsistent with his end product being questionable right now.

Also another player who I feel shouldn't necessarily start in the big games is Gerrard. I know I'll probably get some flak for this but imo he doesn't offer the necessary protection to the defence.

In games against the likes of City, Chelsea etc we do not dominate possession as much as we do against the mid to lower table sides and those teams with the calibre of players they have, can move the ball around Gerrard at a walking pace at times.

Going forward and looking at the options we have, it seems as if Can is the likely replacement for Gerrard. Playing Can ahead of Gerrard in the big games may prove the better option although I'm not yet quite convinced which position Can is most suited to at this time.

I was expecting Coutinho to kick on and have a very good season, but he has started poorly.

This season, he won't be regular starter unless he does become slightly more consistent (worth remembering the young man is still only 22). We have Markovic, Lallana or if we tweak the formation, Balotelli or Can/Allen to come in.

Last season, he starter majority of the matches, partly due to necessity (when we were down to just 2 central midfielders and we wanted to play 3 in midfield) and partly due to his very good, but sporadic form.

26 Aug 2014 17:49:23
Play in the No.10 Role and He would be Unplayable. He needs space and loves to drop deep and carry the ball through with his tricky runs.
No use of playing in him on the flanks.

26 Aug 2014 17:58:12
Coutinho's best performances have always been when he's played through the middle with two holding midfielders behind him. I don't understand why he's been shoved out wide

What si there to understand? BR wants to pay a 4-3-3 with 2 central midfielders and hence Coutinho had to play out wide.

Coutinho' best position is in next to hendo with Stevie behind, it gives him a lot if time on the ball and keeps the team ticking, that way sterling can move inside with balo & Sturridge up top.

No br wants to play 2 up top I think.

Coutinho was not playing out wide yesterday he was, for the most part, played centrally. Either way, in the middle or out wide, he needs to do more. Yesterday even his passing was casual and inaccurate and he gave away possession numerous times -its not good enough. The lad, on his day, is almost unplayable - but its not good having 1 good game in every 5, we need consistently good performances: I think Lallana is going to really test Coutinho's quality - I hope he rises to the challenge.

26 Aug 2014 14:56:06
Im no.longer discussing last nights result, its been and gone and only BR can rectify defense.
Moving on if lucas is to leave i'd love to see suso take his place if he remains. Different player but a quality, technically gifted midfielder who has a bit of bite( dont) and aggression to his game.

26 Aug 2014 15:37:55
I don't think, sadly, suso will have many games at the club bar the occasional cup game

If Coutinho continues to play poorly and Lallana is still not fit then I think Suso is worth starting personally.

26 Aug 2014 14:03:15
Hi all, not a regular poster but addicted reader.

As a fan who is always optimistic about transfers and performance I'm looking at it from this POV.
We are three points better off than the same fixtures as last season (correct me if I'm mistaken).

We do still have issues to address within the side and I'm sure BR is on the case. Last night should have made it clear to BR that Johnson has lost it. I've been a huge fan of his but I can't defend him any longer. Sorry!
SM was only maybe at fault for the third goal (poor positioning) and AM was caught napping for the first.

We need to play two strikers. We are missing goals. I know it's only two games in, but I'm certain on that already.
We will create chances with the squad we have but we need players in the box to finish them. RS, PC, JH, LM, and AL are all capable of creating but without MB or DS to finish off we are going to miss out this season.

Studge was wide on a lot of occasions last night which left no one in the middle. Hopefully supermario will be what we need.

We need anfield to be the fortress it was last season and to play with the attacking mentality we know we can. The atmosphere felt flat against Southampton and we need teams to fear us again.

Sorry to waffle.

YNWA

26 Aug 2014 13:43:15
Now to me Lovren and Sakho should be our first choice CB partnership, but it seems that not everyone is of the idea, let's make some sort of a poll here,

Agree this post for - Lovren & Sakho

Disagree this post for - Skrtel & Lovren

maybe we'll get to see the opinions of the citizens of Liverpool-rumours!

26 Aug 2014 14:12:13
I think our ideal CB pairing will be up for debate but the one constant I see is that Lovren will be a starter.

It really depends on who BR wants to be partnering Lovren:
* Skrtel - solid but always a bit erratic and lucky to be getting away with the amount of shirt pulls within the box as he did last year. I'm sure his indiscretions within the box will be more scrutinized this year by the refs.

* Sakho - will be hard to justify spending £18mn on him and have him on the bench when fit. Seems like a monster when playing for France but very nervous when being asked to play the ball out from the back for us.

Agree there m1lz however as Skrtel Lovren isn't currently working, I don't see why we can't drop one. That is how you keep them on their toes innit? drop them when they don't perform so they know they have to be on top of their game otherwise they will be replaced.

26 Aug 2014 14:57:28
Hey K.

Regardless of who gets picked or dropped, I think its a great problem for BR have. Just having the squad depth that allows us to to have several different CB permutations this year was something that was lacking last year.

I'd be more than happy for the trio of Lovren-Sakho-Skrtel to be rotated until the "ideal" pairing can be found all the while allowing them to work up an understanding of each others strengths/weaknesses.

Lets not forget we still have the vastly experienced Agger (when fit) and to a lesser extent, Toure and Coates lurking in the background.

26 Aug 2014 15:26:33
I don't think anyone here disagrees with it, I inferred from something that Ed002 says however that BR seems to disagree with it? If so, why?

Agreed. although i'm not sure if wed still have Agger and Coates after 1st September mate.

heres hoping our defense improves!

There is a lot of people here believe that a certain Cb combination of personal will solve our defence issues. We have been rotating our cbs last season just that, trying out Sakho- Skretel, Agger - Toure, Toure - Sakho. And none of them work.

It's not the Cb's or the quality of it(we have very good centre backs in the squad, lovren and sakho proved just that in the world cup). But we do not have any cover to protect our back 4 as we are attacking or even defending . Gerrard, is not a defence midfielder nor is henderson or allen.

Also the fact, I think that our defensive coach and Glen Driscoll - (Head of Performance) is not good enough and perhaps an upgrade of someone that knows the balance of attacking and defending is needed. Maybe someone likes Alan Hansen or could nick one of Tony Pulis Defensive coaches.

Playing lovren on the right of the centre back pair and sakho on the left should be a massive improvement on playing skrtle anywhere. Lovren might prefer playing left but any disadvantage is more than made up by leaving skrtle on the bench.

{Ed002's Note - You need to get that message to Brendan then - he seems to agree with me.}

26 Aug 2014 13:12:50
Hi eds

just wondering what is happening regarding our no7? Will we be looking to assign it to a member of our current squad or are we hoping to bring someone in? I know how iconic this number is to Liverpool so I know it wouldn't be handed out easily.

thanks in advance

{Ed001's Note - I don't believe any of our squad wanted it this year mate.}

There is a growing trend of keeping the numbers the player started his career with. In the bigger scheme of things, they mean nothing.

Having said that, I can understand nobody wanting the number Suarez wore last; difficult to follow in his (or the legends who are remembered for it) footsteps.

26 Aug 2014 12:57:07
hi eds reds very dissapointed with last nights result, have to say most of the first half we were the better team but we failed with the last ball and didn't take our chances, I was surprised alberto made his debut in such a big game especlaiiy alongside lovren who s new too. I felt before any signings were made we needed and need a faster mobile centre back.i wish gerrard could do it but don't think he can, the five cbs we have there isn't one that fast so there posistioning needs to be spot on, clearly it wasnt, I think sakho needs to be played, dagger still injured and not as fast as he was, so why let illori go on loan? lallana could be a massive signing for us, sturridge and balotelli have the potential to be fantastic. l still belive we will have a gtear season, we go again come on redmen!.

26 Aug 2014 13:27:12
We weren't the better team in the first half mate, We had better % of the ball, But hardly used it.

Sakho and Toure are both quick. I was banging on for them to play together for the best part of 25 weeks last season. Never happened though.

26 Aug 2014 14:05:59
I have to disagree with respect Harry, we controlled the game for 40 mins. I genuinely think the selection may have been wrong. Manquillo should have started ahead of Johnson, Coutinho should have been in the midfield 3 (ahead of Allen or Henderson) with Markovic & Sterling on the wings to provide the pace. Markovic was pretty good when he came on, perhaps not yet match fit? Still we have Balo & Adam to come into the team so I'm not too concerned, a diamond certainly seems to be the primary intention of BR.

26 Aug 2014 15:03:03
Fornax

City had no problem in letting us having the ball and doing nohitng. I don't think any team would have a problem with it.
We couldn't capitalise with the control we had.

26 Aug 2014 12:48:59
Ed001, do you think Ed002 is right and that Skrtel and Lovren will be first choice? I will seriously start to doubt Rodgers defensive knowledge if this is the case.

Last season virtually all of our goals conceded came through Johnson and Skrtel. So what does Rodgers do? Replace Flanagan and Sakho! This is simply ridiculous if it's the case and the final straw for me that says we need a director of football to help Rodgers out. We will concede 50+ goals yet again unless the right side of our defense is addressed. The annoying thing is, Lovren and Flanno/Manquillo can address that problem! A back 4 of Manquillo/Flanno, Lovren, Sakho and Moreno with Can protecting them and Romero behind them would be a vast improvement on last seasons defensive unit. Is it just a case of bedding people in slowly or is Rodgers seriously content with conceding over a goal a game?

City's first goal yesterday highlighted yet again a massive weakness of Mingolet's that is never mentioned on here; his complete inability to stop a shot with his feet. It's like he has rubber ankles.

{Ed001's Note - I was under the impression that Lovren was bought to replace Skrtel, not to replace Sakho. If anyone at the club is stupid enough to think that transfer policy would make sense, then they need to be removed from any contact with our transfer dealings! It was certainly said to me that Sakho was only out because he is not fully fit. Skrtel was available for transfer I was told, along with Agger, Toure and Johnson. I know Kelly was sold and Ilori farmed out on loan because we couldn't shift Toure or Skrtel, but it would be lunacy to have spent 17m on a back up centre back in Sakho.

This whole summer is just looking more and more bizarre, in terms of transfers, too many brought in and now our youth players are not going to get any chance of showing that Sterling is not the only talent we have.

I did say at the start of the summer that one of the main priorities was a replacement/competition for Mignolet. Yesterday just highlighted how bizarre our policy is that we still haven't signed a player for a priority position and two of the other priorities signed so late, in Balotelli and Moreno, that only one could play. Instead we brought in a right back we didn't need, a winger the manager didn't ask for. What on earth is going on?

Still it is not all doom and gloom, yes we were well beaten yesterday, but the team showed good spirit and made chances against the best side in the league. We just need to go back to the swashbuckling style we had last season and tighten up defensively.}

Hi eds, who is the winger that rodgers didn't want?

{Ed001's Note - we only signed one winger this summer, surely it is easy to figure it out? Though, on his performance yesterday, he does look a good player.}

26 Aug 2014 13:29:15
a winger the manager didn't ask for

Ed01, We always wanted a Left Sided Forwad?, Am I wrong?

{Ed001's Note - yes, but the one chosen was not the choice of Rodgers.}

Thoroughly agree with Ed001. I feel like we've went and pulled out the prettiest puzzle pieces we could find and just now are trying to figure out how to jam them all together. A bit of stick to United for buying Di Maria with no one really getting where he fits in their side, but I'm not convinced we've done any different for the most part.

EMS, the back 4 many.would agree, the sktrl situation is bizarre and I hope edd002 is potentially wrong on this one( sorry ed) :)
Romero mate is no improvement on mignolet, I've watched him many many times. His distribution is terrible, he.doesnt command in the box and is nowere near top class. It was always in the back of my mind, .next summer we would sign a top drawer GK. I believe our spending is done. Looking at now, it should have been addressed than other positions. Courtais at.Chelsea could be the difference for them winninh the title.

Edd001 you.mentioned a winger Rodgers.didnt ask for. Are you referring to Markovic? He.mighten have been what we needed but he looks like he could make an impact this season IMO. Raw but doesn't lack confidence

You know what I won't mind if skrtel is dropped for another defender, but it has to be someone who was better than him last season which sakho clearly wasn't.he was average last season and needs to fight for his place.sakho only shows why we paid 17m for him when he plays for france
I agree about johnson but why ignore how bad lovren was last night also

Cheers Ed. Let's hope it is just Sakho not being fit. Completely agree regarding Markovic btw, he was brilliant when he came. Reminded me of a young Messi the way he could somehow hold onto the ball when surrounded by 3 or 4 players. Let's hope he reachs his potential with us.

Just out of interest Ed001, who would be your 3 preferred but realistic options for the GK position?

{Ed001's Note - 3? I can only think of Begovic off the top of my head.}

26 Aug 2014 14:24:01
3 main problems in our defence
1. Johnson and skrtel full stop. Neather has any possitional sence at all. Johnson offers nothing in defence or going forward (is it true about the if fit he must play clause!?)
2. Middfield not tracking men leaving our back 4 exposed. It happend time and time again in fhe first 2 games and sorry if this upsets people but gerrard is the worst culprit of this silva did it constantly last night.
3. Mignolet great shot stopper BUT awful soon as he gets a foot of his line. Plus he should be the man telling his defence there 30yards to deep but does nothing of the kind. Distribution is dire at best shits himself if he has the ball played back to him and he has to use his feet

Should have perhaps been going in for Cech the moment Courtois started the first Chelsea game. No clue if it could have been workable, but he's easily the best keeper that could be moving this summer.

I think many of us underestimate the value of correct coaching. I clearly remember 3-4 seasons ago when our defense was solid and our main problem was hitting the woodwork most of the time and not scoring enough goals. Of course it was under a different manager and coaching staff (KD). I really am beginning to believe that the coaching staff now is simply not up to it as far as the defense is concerned. I see defenders being signed, defenders being loaned out, and a few being sold. But I don't see any real changes on the defense's performances on the field. We can't keep on blaming Skrtle's deep defending and Glen Johnson's walkabouts for every goal that we let in. I think the coaching staff is to be commended on their job on the midfield and attack, but they are surely lacking in the defense department. Instead of a Director of Football, I would much rather a defensive coach (specialist) be brought in to help out Rodgers, Pascoe et al. I've read this suggestion here before, and now I fully support it.

Brendan had the opportunity to keep Steve Clarke but chose not too.
Maybe we will rue this decision?
Ed, do you no of any specialist Defensive coaches? Do other teams use them?
More to the point is Brendan too stubborn to be advised as to the possible need for one at our club?

{Ed002's Note - BR was responsible to SC for much of his time at Chelsea but Liverpool decided to sack him. There is no shortage of defensive coaches and some clubs do use them. Arsenal have Steve Bould and the great Boro Primorac for example.}

26 Aug 2014 12:33:02
Dear Eds

After last nights match and time to reflect, it's clear we need to give the lads a chance to gel and know each others games. The first 10-15 games of this season could be win half and lose half. So with Lucas looking to be on the way out, any chance of a dominant Midfield enforcer coming in? Can looks bright, Henderson is robust and Gerrard has the passing, but none of them have the box to box enforcer type about them (IMO).

{Ed001's Note - it is not expected, a keeper seems to be it now. Mind we shouldn't need anything more after all we have bought. If there is weaknesses in the squad, that aren't covered by youth players, then we really need to rethink our transfer policy. We have bought a ridiculous amount of players, there should not be a single gap left by now.}

26 Aug 2014 12:54:32
Ed01. Dead spot on, But I think We have coverd it well execpt a top class DM and a GK.
We bought 3 from Saints and the best is still with them. Morgan Schniderlien.
No DOF means its all BR's pick, Am I right Ed?

{Ed001's Note - Rodgers did not choose all our signings.}

26 Aug 2014 13:31:28
ED01. If not BR then who?. A transfer commitee act as per the Manger?
Could you explain, if you have time.
I had the impression that all our signings were BR's Choice, Execpt Ballo.

{Ed001's Note - the committee schose, well a member chose other than Rodgers and it was accepted as a decision.}

Are any of our signings his choice that you know of ed001 mate?

{Ed001's Note - Lovren was defo, as was Moreno. Not sure on the others bar Balotelli and Markovic, neither of which were his choice. Though I do believe Manquillo was his.}

I thought Brendan had the final say, Ed? Do you think buying so many players was to appease fans, rather than anything else?

{Ed001's Note - no, he doesn't always have final say.}

But ED01, wasn't Lallana chosen by Rodgers?

And to kg1981, we have a box to box player in Emre Can. Now, we have to see if he's going to be instructed to act as such (if he has many opportunities).

{Ed002's Note - I am sure Lallana was his choice.}

I'm guessing Fallows is the guy who wanted him.

26 Aug 2014 12:22:58
Everybody calm down.
Only 2 games into the season.

26 Aug 2014 11:33:21
Please make no mistake I don't think Hendo is a bad player but I specifically watched him to see if I can see what everyone see in his contribution to our defensive part in the game. I haven't seen one tackle made or attempt to make one. I applaud his work rate and giving 100% to the cause but he is not putting anyone under pressure. He may be played out of position but it is of my opinion that a midfielder should chase the ball down putting the opponents under pressure to make rash passes. When he has the ball he seems to want to get rid of it asap hence the continuous back passes afraid of making a mistake. He never takes players on with the ball also a criteria a midfielder should possess. He do have a few moments of brilliance against weaker opponent's but in the crunch games he is not stepping up to the plate. I agree he has improved allot but it is the area in which he needs to work on more to improve. I don't want to get rid of him like everyone wants of Johnson but if that part don't get better we will always struggle in midfield against the top teams. It's not a witch hunt against him just my observation of his last couple of games.

26 Aug 2014 12:43:18
SA Red

We are not going to Buy Vidal. Hendo had a poor game yesterday, He would come good next game against Spurs.

26 Aug 2014 11:07:41
Individual mistakes cost us the game, simple.

1st City goal: Gerrard loses Silva, Lovren heads wrong way, Moreno caught on his heels. That is 3 mistakes from 3 players.

2nd City goal: City get behind midfield and ahead of LFC's defense way to easily. This was a feature throughout the Southampton game too, with Gerrard and Henderson in particular letting their men easily get behind them. In this instance, Henderson and Jovetic were level when Jovetic initially makes the pass, and then runs into the box while Henderson let's him go way too easily.

I wonder BR asking Henderson to add more goals to his game has had a detrimental effect on his defensive studiousness?

3rd City goal: Shambolic. Pathetic defending. Lovren doesn't have the pace to keep up with Aguero, but Skrtel, who was as close to AGuero as Lovren when the ball was made by Navas, should go with Aguero really. Skrtel was out of position all game, coming in late and missing his man or the ball and literally, he was chasing shadows all game.

But even after that mistake, Mignolet is the one who really is the biggest culprit. If he had stayed on his line, it would never have been a goal. I understand Ed001 has said Mignolet may have been asked to play sweeper keeper in the 2nd half, but if you are the sweeper keeper, you need your defense to be higher up the pitch and even then, the GK has to be a better judge on when to come out. That was just really really poor from Mignolet, amateur stuff.

Just my critical view.

Time to look at the mistakes, address the obvious and move forward.

26 Aug 2014 11:41:33
The Real AG

Absolutely dead spot on. For the Very first time, I have seen you actually pointing out the mistake which we keeps repeating.

Adding up with your points, We offered very very little going forward. Last season We always had goals in first 15 mts of evey game Home or away.

Joe Allen is not a starter. He is just a back up when you want to see out the game. He has wake up from his swansea spell, Liverpool don't play Swansea way ( Passing game )

26 Aug 2014 12:01:02
I agree with that to a tee. Gerrard constantly let's his man run past him his tracking men is awful. Skrtel is as u say so possitionally bad he pulls the whole defence everywhere and we have to play 20 yards deeper becoz of him in my eyes.

Mignolet was shocking, as were skrtel and johnson, the midfield did little defending as the game went on, and our cuttijg edge attacking was non existant.

Honestly it was a shocking performance but at least its that one out the way, city didn't even play well either, the difference between the sides was simply well organised defending.

Hope we start with two strikers against spurs and batter them.

26 Aug 2014 12:40:38
I think that game came too soon for us but players will learn from their mistakes I'm concerned the space players r getting running at our defence but early days remember we only won 2 games against the top 4 last season.6 matches 4 losses 2wins coyr for Sunday.

AG a fair summary, I was surprised at how they didn't pick up Jovetic, he was trouble when we played MC in the US this summer. On the Aguero goal I also think we were a little naive.
As I mentioned yesterday, I think the starting 11 will look quite different in a few weeks. ManCity are the standard and as we saw last night we aren't quite there, but I think we saw enough green shoots to feel that good things are coming.

26 Aug 2014 09:58:08
On the bright side, we lost 6 games last season. We've already played 2 of those 6 fixtures and have 3 more points than we did last season. Let's hope we wipe the floor with Spurs this weekend and let everyone know that we are no laughing stock.

26 Aug 2014 10:08:25
100% with you Mate, We must Beat Spurs and that's a serious must, No Excuse. BR has to pick a team that's capable of scoring goals.

Then we need to play with two strikers up front, the obvious choice is DS and MB but I'd like to see RL start with one of DS or MB.

I'd also like to see more game time for LM and EC.

What do you guys think?

I know there has only been two games played so far this season and it is far to early to make any predictions however I am concerned that we may need this season to gel properly which we cannot afford to let happen. I thought we played quite well against city but the defense still looked poor at times and mignolet's positioning for the 3rd goal was crazy. I feel that we must beat Tottenham on Sunday and I am confident that we will but I hope that the team gels quickly because we must finish top four as a minimum if we are to continue our improvement season on season.
Cheers
M

Only if we are guaranteed to win the reverse fixtures this year too.

Our defence is not the problem but our defensive midfield is not commanding the play. They need to press forward more other than passing backwards. It puts no pressure on the opponents midfield

First and foremost, BR needs to stop playing Coutinho out wide. He needs to play as the most advanced midfielder ahead of Henderson and Gerrard/Can. A front 3 of Sturridge, Sterling and Balotelli would cause havoc up front with the ammunition provided by the midfield 3 who can all create chances on their own.

26 Aug 2014 11:54:41
Indian

Agreed mate, I am not worried with the goals conceded. City, Chelsea, Arsenal away, You can't keep clean sheet. that's very very difficult.

But At no point through out the game, I thought we might score, Now that's something to worry.

Harry, we did create gaps in their defense quite a number of times, but the player were simply not willing to take a shot at Hart. Too much of tippy tappy football outside the opposition box, with no intention of scoring. The players seem to be low on confidence. Hopefully Balotelli will be able to raise the confidence in the dressing room.

26 Aug 2014 09:42:18
I'm getting a bit sick of commentators and pundits saying things like "would Liverpool have played different if Suarez was playing" etc etc. It's irrelevant as he wouldn't have been playing either game if he was still a red. They need to drop this, it's getting boring and is irrelevant tbh.

26 Aug 2014 10:10:21
Death Mate.

Sturridge needs a partner in crime upfront. He is deadly When He is with another world class talent. The result would show up immediately.

Ballo upfront with Sturridge in a Diamond formation.

Luis may be gone but "Just Can't Get Enough" is still stuck in my brain!

I agree I was like a kid on Xmas day when I heard he'd signed, I'm not having a go at Rodgers or Sturridge. I'm having a go at people constantly saying if we still had Suarez etc wouldn't make a blind bit of difference at the moment so it's irrelevant saying it.

26 Aug 2014 09:10:03
Hey eds, I only just noticed that Lucas didn't even make the bench for the game last night. BR didn't mention him being injured, so is there something going on transfer wise potentially?

Thanks in advance.

{Ed002's Note - See previous answers please.}

26 Aug 2014 09:54:31
Quick question eds, I read on here years ago about glen Johnson having a clause that he must play if fit or something to that effect. At the time I never believed it because surely it's not something any club could commit too but lately I'm starting to wonder if there is more too it. How he is still in the team is beyond me. Feel stupid for asking but can you confirm it doesn't exist for my peace of mind lol

{Ed001's Note - I was told it does. Or rather it was agreed to when he initially signed for us, in order to clinch the deal, as he had other offers. I know Ed002 doesn't think it would be enforcable, but I do believe it exists.}

26 Aug 2014 10:11:43
ED01, You are spot on dear. It does, else He wouldn't start ahead Monquillo, No chance.

I heard this at the time, it was so it wouldn't effect his England career.

Thanks ed. My worst nightmare is confirmed then! That was one seriously poor bit of business on our behalf that badly needs rectified. That might explain why he's always on regardless of form and at either left or right back plus why he never agreed another contract because 1st 1 was so damn good.

Agree with ed001. There has to be some clause in that contract which states he has to play when fit. Johnson is so bad that even the fans are celebrating his injury (im not one of them btw, I would rather we just release him from the stupid contract) and yet all the managers we have had in the past 5 years continue to persist with him. There is no way any sane manager would start him over Manquillo or Flanno considering how poor a player he is.

26 Aug 2014 08:42:25
i think most of the fans don't understand football yet. they dnt understand the game nd just watch the scores nd then they keep moaning abt it. I thought we did better than city in attacking but city were a little more clinical.we had the ball most of the times nd looked more creative nd determined than city. first half before the first goal city were looking already lost nd barely even had a shot on goal. then in the second half throughn an excellent FANCY play they get another.even teams like city dnt score such goals in long time. nd them because of mignolet we concede another. but I think we maintained our aggression throughout nd didn't lose heart. Moreno for me looks like the quickest centre back in the epl.he interception of jovetic was amazing. the way he ran into him with so much pace was worth applauding. I loved moreno. can anyone please inform me if he will be playing next week or is the injury serious?.LAZAR MARKOVIC is a DIAMOND . he was our best player when he came on. I think moreno nd lazar on left side could cause havoc to teams this season.we are stronger than last season.we dnt need suarez. sum1 else will step up nd take his place. when playing for us Peter Crouch was englands first choice. nd what happened to the Torres' nd the Owens' when they left us?. they failed. so I think will suarez . its like a curse. I am confident we will win the Premier League this Season .3-1 was a flattering scoreline. I hope people here acknowledge that. i'm happy nd optimistic.spurs are going down .

Red Tahmid
Moreno is a left back not centre back but I agree besides his obvious mistake he looked great going forward and has electric pace.
Markovic was dangerous when he came on and his first touch, the one two with Moreno nearly led to a goal.

26 Aug 2014 08:31:18
I think Coutinho struggled on the slower pitch but City are very powerful in midfield. Sterling's pace gets him out of trouble more.
Can is a big, powerful lad but he looked slow. I hope I'm wrong.
We weren't that bad but I wish we'd sort the defence out. I still say our best defender is sat in the ssn studio, haha.

26 Aug 2014 08:52:54
Countinho was played on the wings and he has always struggle there just like Mata.
You are not going to play Jovetic on the flanks, aren't you?

Can isn't slow. Especially if you compare him to sg, Allen or lucas

Me, no. But City play Jovetic on the left side as they change formation throughout the game.

26 Aug 2014 08:03:27
Simple, we are missing Suarez and it will take a bit of time to readjust and get some confidence going. The first 6 games are very tough.

No so much missing saurez, were missing another striker which balo will sort.

26 Aug 2014 07:25:20
I actually thought we played quite well. We dominated for the whole game excluding 20 minutes in the middle of the second half. The problem was our final ball. The amount of times when the decisive through ball or cross didn't even beat the first man was ridiculous. I hate to say it, but Coutinho was awful. Lambert gave us something to aim at when he came on and made a real difference. Great goal though and excellent work from Sturridge to make it.

On the goals we conceded, well the first was clearly a combination of errors. Firstly Gerrard didn't follow his man into the box which led to Lovren making a challenge, secondly Lovrens header was far to weak and should've been a knock down for Mingolet and thirdly Moreno should've reacted much quicker. Then is youbwant a fourth, Mingolet could easily have saved it.

The second was as per usual, shocking defending from Skrtel and Johnson. Skrtel was 5 yards too deep and played everyone onside and then Johnson for some ridiculous reason ran and stood on the line rather than mark the guy running in at the back post. All he did was give Jovetic too much time and block Mingolet from getting across his goal to make a save.

The third was just a result of our sloppiness in the final third and Mingolets awful decision making to charge of his line at a player running diagonally in full sprint. From City's point of view, a perfect counterattack.

So yeah, we lost. But that game could've been so different and the scoreline flattered them. Just think; if Sturridge holds his run for a second, it's 1-1, game on. That is how fine winning wnd losing can be. As it happens, it was ruled out, which meant we continued to push and got absolutely cut to pieces on the counter.

What I take from this game? We need to play with two strikers (Mario step forward lad), Coutinho is far too inconsistent right now and should be dropped for Lallana as soon as he's fit and Markovic for the time being. Johnson is no loss, Manquillo and Flanno are both better players. Rodgers has to drop Skrtel for Sakho now, he just cannot focus. Mingolet is sadly not good enough right now. Gerrard is not quick enough across the ground to cover the back 4 and doesn't read the game well enough to make up for that.

I don't think we played awful and the result definitely flattered them. However if we want to be title contenders, Rodgers needs to address a few problems starting with dropping Johnson, Skrtel and Gerrard. Mingolet and Coutinho are inconsistently good players so need stiff competition.

26 Aug 2014 08:57:45
Adam

Much like what you said, I have some points to add.

Playing 4-3-3 with Allen in the middle will restrict your attacking intent, But we would win the midfield and would have decent possession ( Much like Swansea )

Forget the goals conceded, No team apart from Chelsea kept clean sheet at City.

No use of playing Countinho on the Flanks, Its as good as playing him as a GK.

With Ballo and Lallana to come in, We are excellent.

cheers to life.

I Agree it's ten men with couthino out wide and Rodgers should be seeing this we look much more potent with 2 forwArds, what's happend to the fast pressing attacking play

Definitely agree ems.

I feel that due to his style of play Gerrard can often be made to be a bit of a scapegoat following defeats. I thought he actually played pretty well on the whole yesterday, apart from letting silva run away from him for the first goal. I do think though that he tired significantly in the second half and that BR needs to be more prepared to take him off.

I think Hendo had an uncharacteristically quiet game yesterday, especially in the second half and I think this meant that Gerrard had a little less protection in front of him leading to him having more to do at a period in the game when we were struggling and he was tiring.

I think Gerrard tiring in the second half really does enhance my belief that we could really benefit from signing another cm/dm to replace Lucas, who looks like he may be on his way out, with either Can or Allen as our only option off the bench in a central role. With our system being based so heavily based upon movement and pressing in the middle it is a big ask to expect Allen & Gerrard to play a full 90 every week. So an agile midfielder like Kovacic to either start ahead of or replace Allen in the second half, could allow Can to move into Gerrard's defensive role in which I think he will excel.

26 Aug 2014 12:02:42
Finally, someone who talk some sense instead of just slating players. You have exactly same thought with me EMS. Johnson and Skrtel have been defensive liablity for some time now. As long as they stay in the first eleven, I can't see us improve defensively.

A back four of Flanagan Lovren Sakho Moreno is the best answer for me. We'll see once given chance they can become a really good back four. But sadly, as long as we can't sell Johnson, he will remains as first team player because of the clause in his contract. As for Skrtel, I believe BR will soon drop him for Sakho (when he is fully fit) and Lovren plays at RCB. I remember that Ed001 also got same opinion on Skrtel. And this season is the one for Mignolet to prove his worth as 1st choice GK. If he doesn't, he'll be replaced next season.

As for Gerrard, this may well be his last season in his career. But I believe we have Can for now for that position and next season Rossiter as well. Just really hope we can move on Agger, Coates, Johnson, Lucas, Borini and Assaidi before the transfer windows shuts. If we do so, we'll have a balance squad with some opportunity to give the youngsters their chances.

Overall, I'm optimistic and believe that we're heading to the right direction. Have some faith!

Cheers.

26 Aug 2014 05:38:39
Just want to thanx Macca. Amazed me not for a first time about our new 45 striker. Regards

26 Aug 2014 03:57:20
Hi everyone, just a couple of things, first of all it is just the second game, and we do not play with the same fluidity we did lilke last year BR needs to replay some tapes from last years games .
We need balotelli upfront with Sturridge that suits the team more. Markovic looks very Good and Can too. Lambert works hard, Johnson is clueless, and don't forget man city have played together for a while and our lads some were new.
Some fine tuning needed. We will do well, we are not going to win every game. One more thing I hope next time lambert gets a chance screaming at him like today he shoots the ball into the net and not passes it on.

26 Aug 2014 02:04:27
Yes, it was a loss but Liverpool even three nill down never lost hope and pushed for a draw. I loved that about this team. There were many chances that should have been converted when markovic and lambert came on but this is football. We go again at tottenham and it will be a very different game. YNWA

25 Aug 2014 23:25:19
Hi Ed001,

Watched the game today and thought Lovren was pretty poor.

Poor positioning and header for the first goal.
Poor positioning (pushing up unnecessarily) leaving a massive gap for the second goal.
And extremely poor positioning for the third goal.

Do you think this is a problem with Lovren? Or our defensive work in general? Or Rodgers' ability as a defensive coach?

I just don't think Skrtel and Lovren are a quality centre back pairing, they are both pretty average defenders. Much prefer Sakho-Toure or Sakho-Ilori myself.

Hopefully with work on the training pitch this will improve, but I can't help thinking we have our best CB on the bench.

Cheers

{Ed001's Note - Lovren was poor? Seriously? He was far from poor and followed the tactical instructions he was given. The problem was with the overall performance, Rodgers is trying to change the style again, when there was nothing wrong with going at teams and attacking them! We didn't lose the league because of our style, it was because we went at them that we came so much closer than we ever should have been able to. Unfortunately now we are seeing a team being restricted, instead of continuing to attack constantly.}

Ed do us a favor, since you seem ti know people in high places, next time you're over, drop BR a hint! Good lad

{Ed001's Note - I am sure he will look at the game and try and take lessons from it anyway mate, it is something he does a lot of.}

26 Aug 2014 11:00:25
agree ed1
would rather see us go for it again.
all the teams in the league are there to be beaten. we seemed to sit back in possession far too much which invited them onto us

perhaps the focus will shift with balotelli up top

Ed001,

Interesting, so you think it is Rodgers' new system that led to the defensive vulnerabilities?

You mentioned tactical instructions Lovren was given, could you develop on that more possibly?

I do feel he had a part to play in all three of Man City's goals, especially the second goal where he pushed forward without bringing the whole line up creating a big gap. That could only be his fault right? Unless he told Skrtel and Johnson to push up and they were to slow to move up with him?

Also do you think Gerrard as the deepest lying cm gives us enough protection?

Cheers

{Ed001's Note - firstly Lovren was considered to be out of position because he was holding a central position, which he was clearly under orders to do as much as possible. I would say it was felt that Dzeko, Silva and Nasri are all looking to attack within the width of the 18 yard box so the defence was to be kept narrow. You could see on every City attack that the defence was trying to keep narrow and let Sterling and Coutinho deal with the width.

Skrtel always ignores what he is told and stays deep, which is why I personally do not rate him. He is always found deeper than his partner, it will always be an issue until he is replaced. Johnson I would forget about, he is so out of his depth defensively that it gives me kittens. Moreno had to come across the width of the pitch at one point because he was not coming across on the cover like he should.

While Johnson and Skrtel are in the team, with their tendency to ball watch and one not working back as he should, while the other is dropping too deep, leaving huge gaps between them, there will always be issues defensively. There is no teamwork between those two, I don't know how you can blame Lovren for not being able to establish a partnership in 2 games, when those two haven't in all the years they have played together.

As for Gerrard, in games like the City game, no, he simply isn't able to protect the back line well enough. It doesn't help that his range of passing is stifled by City being strong defensively, so he can't even make up for it with his offensive ability.}

Ed I have to completely agree with your points there.

All out attack is the only way to go, forget what the pundits say, who dares wins, am I right? Goals win you games, not sitting back, I really didn't feel that we threatened city offensively last night at all.

And I was also madly confused because, while the media are placing the blame on lovren and moreno, I thought they were okay, but the other side of our defence continues to let us down in every single match. The same happened last year, it was always somehow sakho or flanagans fault, yet skrtel and johnson were just a liability all year, no communication, no organisation, nothing, johnson plays like a pitch inader attempting to blend in, while skrtel plays like how mascherano did in midfield for us- except he's a centre half.

I have said for ages now that the right side of the defence is almost entirely to blame, yet brendan does nothing about it, and carries on fiddling with other side, as though johnson and skrtel can do no wrong!

25 Aug 2014 23:09:22
City vs Liverpool

Not a good game and has certainly deflated the bubble of optimism surging around Anfield.

Positives
- Markovic was bright when he came on
- Sterling was again excellent
- Sturridge did well for our goal

Negatives
- Defensive woes continue (Johnson, Skrtel - regular disappointments)
- Gerrard was anonymous for the entire game
- Coutinho had another indifferent game, his passing was especially poor, he needs to up his quality as he hasn't been good enough in the 2 games he has played this season
- Lambert had a great chance to make it 3-2 but opted to try and pass it - hate to say but he seems burdened by playing for his boyhood club, like he is putting too much pressure on his own shoulders

Good & Bad
-Moreno: did well the entire game but a bad lapse in concentration which lead to us conceding the first goal and it cost us dearly, a brutal introduction to the Premier League

Conclusion

In a game that was always going to be tough we were excellent for 40 minutes, endured a bad defensive lapse, went in at half time 1-0 down and never recovered. Think City did well overloading certain area's of the pitch as it drew players out of position and opened up gaps. Zabaleta was particularly impressive, Nasri was very effective (though lucky not to be booked as he committed numerous fouls) and Jovetic did what every top striker does which is take advantage of any opportunity presented. What was most impressive about City though was there organisation - they were so well drilled and disciplined, particularly at the back, that we looked very amateurish at times. If we run through the goals we can see that for the 1st Moreno is napping and far too casual and is punished for it. The 2nd is just shambolic defending - I have rarely seen the LB/LCB and the RB/RCB so out of sync with one another. Lovren and Moreno were about 3-4 yards more advanced than Johnson and Skrtel and this created the space in behind that City so ruthlessly exploited. I also don't understand why Johnson retreated to the goal line - surely coming out to meet Jovetic/attempt to block the shot would have been more prudent? The 3rd goal, in my opinion, was just a good goal. The weight of pass and the vision was excellent and Aguero finished like a champ.

We have made defensive re-enforcements this summer - these will be undermined if we continue with Skrtel/Johnson. I think, given his form, there is a lot of truth in the speculation that Johnson has a "must play when fit" clause in his contract. Gerrard's form worries me - I openly admit (and indeed you can find my post saying as much) to supporting Gerrard starting this game. That may or may not have been a wise decision but what I can say is that he was ineffective for the entire game and, by its conclusion, capable of no more than a gentle jog. I don't see how Gerrard can continually command a 1st team place and play 90 minutes - to even a casual observer it is clear that, physically, he just doesn't have the stamina. How Rodgers deals with it I am not sure - I think Gerrard is a great person to have around the team. Perhaps Rodgers would do well to offer him a player/coach role? It would maintain his authoritative position within the club whilst alllowing for the transition of other midfielders into the starting XI. That's just an idea but he was one of our weakest performers tonight and was one of our weaker performers vs Southampton, not sure the team can continue to accommodate him whilst hoping to win games. Coutinho really needs to step up as well, he's been very peripheral in the 2 games he's played this season and, in both games, been rightly substituted. I thought his passing was particularly poor tonight and really, for the role he occupies, must be sharper and more accurate. I hope he amends this soon.

Overall I don't know exactly how to feel - we were good in spells but let down by familiar issues. These must be amended and focused upon. Without Suarez this season we will not be scoring as many goals -that means if we are going to have a similarly positive season we must tighten up at the back. Moreno showed enough at the back to suggest that he will be a good acquisition - that mistake will be etched onto his memory for a long time afterwards and, in terms of concentration and getting better by making mistakes, might not be a bad thing. Lovren looks good but can't help feeling that whoever partners Skrtel will be undermined by his positional stupidity and inability to work within a cohesive, defensive unit. As for Johnson - I don't think much needs to be said. If that clause exists then the club should buy it out as it is not worth having him as first choice right back for the whole of the season, it will cost us tons of goals. It is probably best for now to forget tonight's games: up until 40 minutes we were the better team but its the little details in the big games that make the difference - City were very good and their quality meant that the little details in this game went their way. There are positives to be drawn from this chastening experience - its just difficult to see them on this side of a 3-0.

25 Aug 2014 23:20:37
Man city do have around 6-7 players who would comfortably in the top ten of their position right now. We have arguably Sturbridge who might be in that bracket. If they well and we don't at them enough the likely hood is a loss. They were patient and clinical. If we were very lucky it could be different as the 1st goal scored was going to be quite defining especially from them. We will certainly be better than and play with more confidence as we progress but spurs will also be out for revenge after last year and I hop we do attack them hard and fast but they will likely score. No one was that bad today really until our plan of containment eventually gave in. If we managed 60-70 mins without letting a goal in it coul have been very different. They looked mature, and confident. We made a couple of mistakes from clever probing . I think a loss was coming but hoped we could have made life more difficult for them. They played a god game and having 6-7 players in the world 10 every game will be very hard to counter. Chelsea might similar with more big loafs, with skill and really see a 2 title push against them. They see just that more assured and intelligent. Let's learn frrom them. Plus Side for me was merlons, for potential very quick and needs more diffensie disciplne but did well I though apart from sloppy, kikick to give 1st goal. I think two that we tried a clever tactic for first 30 mins, although a bit defensive with 2'majy attacking palaver who looked, a, bit lost., wasn't confident for this game, and being taught a footballs lesson to kill the game was clinical in a defensive. Our attacking awe a bit aimless although with some fortune we could have them a go. Defo faults on the goals but Kant teams would missed them. 7 top 10'players in their positio is pretty formidable and more on bench is tough. Chelsea could match them though but man city look a year stronger and better., get behind glen Johnson or try. Thousands of nutty fanc bollocking him won't help. If he fit he plays it seams and not his fail. Would appreciate more thought from him. He seems naive and unconfident which needs addressing. Pluses from me.marcovich and Moreno. He will get better very quickly and can tackle.
To many of our potential gems today were not choosing the right choices. We need to speed up, pace with quickthinking.

If we win next week thn this will be easily forgotten.

I'm sorry, I really tried, I even got more than half way through, but, What?

25 Aug 2014 22:55:29
We were quite good tonight. I don't mind losing away to by far the best team in the league mainly due to our individual errors & unusual ones at that. Mingolet was awful for the 3rd goal but other than that he was okay. Johnson had a decent game tonight I don't like the guy but i'm not going to slate him for no reason. Skrtel was rank. Moreno had a good game & when he's adapted to the PL & understands english etc he'll know he has to kick it with his right foot. Lambert should score. Hendo in the first half got in after a great pass from sterling & should have cut it across for an easy tap in. Coutinwho? Allen had a great game. Gerrard pretty anonymous. But I'm actually happy with how we played. Lazar did well.

Not one of harrys
'Johnson had a decent game tonight'
I have to disagree.
Are you sure you watched the same game and not one from two years ago when Johnson did have a decent game?
In my opinion he was by far our worst performer ( again )
Most others on this site agree and I do not know one LFC supporter that believes he deserves his place.
Everyone can have an off day and not play to their potential but this has been going on for too long now.
He does not deserve to start especially now that we have a few full backs to choose from.
His distribution and ball retention is woeful, his commitment is of the same level.
I will say encouraging things about him if he performs well and do not like slagging off one of our own but he is a liability at the moment.
Consistently our worst performer over the last 12 months.

25 Aug 2014 22:44:44
Well that was a reality check, sort of. Yes, not the worst places in the world to lose, and very few teams will take points in the Etihad but I still think you can predict one or two things about our season based on this one. First, if there is anyone here that still thinks realistically that we and City will compete this season for the same trophies, I think tonight game showed some of the difference. IMO, sad as it sounds, on every position on the pitch (and on the bench) they have better players than ours and they are way more organised. They are going for the title, 4th place is our realistic target and it will not be easy. Also, if there was still anyone thinking that we will not miss Suarez desperatly, the game tonight demonstrated how much we do. We did alright in terms for getting close to their box but around there we looked a bit lost, predictable, naive, not creative and had very few shots on goals, even in the first 30 minutes which were our better ones, and I am not taking anything from City's fantasitc defence. We had possesion and a lot of corners and set pieces but they were all waisted quite miserably (I don't think that even one corner kick reached a red head or foot). With Suzrez we could be leading 2:0 after 30 mins and that would be a different game. I am a bit optimistic that Baloteli can contribute there but only if BR starts with him together with SAS. Defensively we were all over the place, especially after the 1st goal. We looked very unorganised in the back and this didn't change at all from last year I am afraid. With this on one end and the lack of shot on goal in another we have a problem.

Next Sunday is a massive game. Spurs look very good, they have a decent manager and they are one of our main opponents for 4th spot. We lose there and we are six points behind them plus losing any fear factor that we had last year and a people will start to talk about a crisis. I hope and belive that we can play better there, especially with super Mario. Their defence is not as good, so hopefully we can score before them and let them chase us. But it will not be 5:0 again, that's for sure. And a draw there may not be a bad result.

Also, GJ should not be starting for us and I am amazed no sport reporter checked this inamous clause argument. I hope Can will start.

I agree with you in most parts. I do think people are getting carried away by the Spurs performance yday. They are a good team, but we are better. Its early doors matey, can't judge anyone on the first few games. Like I said though, I do agree with most of your points, so in all a good post.

25 Aug 2014 22:32:43
Good news and bad news

Bad news
- we lost our first game 3-0
- our defence still needs help (Johnson n Moreno) can't defend
- mignolet is no where near deserves to be our 1st choice goal keeper (we need a better one)

Good news
- balotelli signed and the video on sky sport is amazing
- Moreno has pace and will cause a threat upfront
- Markovic has strong potential and skill
- The hardest league game is out of the way
- lambert is a good plan B

The good news regarding the bad news is that is wasnt our first game and we lost 3-1. Moreno can defend but he made a couple of errors on his first game ever in the Premier League. let's also not forget that Mignolet saved us points last match.
Anyway, on to the good news.

I just released it was 3-1 not like it made a difference it felt like 3-0 :(