04 Jun 2022 19:42:15
Just thinking out loud regarding impact of Mane, and possibly Salah, departing due to their desire for higher wages etc (or whatever their reasons) . 🤔

While I love them both, for their different contributions over the past 5 seasons, I am coming to the conclusion it's time one or both move on.

Salah:
Yes, he bags a lot of goals for us. However, Klopp's system of play also creates an abundance of chances for Salah et al. and he is increasingly unable to convert those.

It is clear teams have figured him out. To add to this, ever since Ramos injured him, he always pulls out of any 50/ 50 situation (though I see that more like 70/ 30 for Salah) .

What is going to change in Salah's favour?
He won't/ can't change. only Klop's system.
But that is soo predictable now, with our current squad.

So I say cash in. Let Salah get the move to Spain he has been angling for. And fair play to him, he has done soo much for us.

Mane:
Well, I am pretty shocked if media reports are true. I always felt he was quite a sound bloke, with an admirable humanitarian outlook on life.
I'm inclined to feel his comments (if true), are his amateurish attempts of getting a big salary hike. thinking he has an alternative with another big club.
And I hope his apparent personality does not change.
If he leaves, fair play to him. Like Salah, he has been awesome for the club. actually, if you watch Mane play, closely, he is ALWAYS putting 110% into every 50/ 50 ball.
He always stretches to gain that half yard in 50/ 50 balls, drawing the fowl, or passing on for others to score.
He has been phenominal in this respect, and I sometimes despair at criticism sent his way.

That said, I feel now is the time to sell Mane. While he will never be as predictable as Salah, I feel his days of gaining that extra half yard are numbered.

My point:
Since teams have figured out our play, and know how to defend against us, we already need to mix things up.
We need more unpredictability in our final third. just like we had when Salah burst onto the scene. just like when Jota. and Diaz. arrived.

How will we improve next season with aging strikers (sorry Salah, wingers) . what is really going to change?

So I for one think now is the time to let both go. Get as much as poss for both and reinvest in young talent.
I don't believe we need some marquee signing. we need unpredictable strikers to blow teams away. and Klopp's system is geared to create many opportunities for young talented players.

I know it is not easy to cannibalise something that apoears to be working, after we were soo close last season. But I feel if we don't change, we risk slipping off the pace. Remember other teams will not stand still either. They will improve.

Finally:
And to drive the final nail into the coffin, I wonder how our midffield can be improved?
Of course, I love what Hendo, Thiago, and espec Fabinho, have been going. but feel we need more options there to.

Again I have a radical view about this:
Given TAA's abilities in passing. I hope he can increasingly move into midfield. To service through balls to ruuners on BOTH wibgs and central runs, just like Gerrard. even follow through some runs.
Or we bring in that ability (not convinced by suggestions here so far) .

That would mean getting another trusted right back. could Gomez. grow more into this. if TAA was was in right midfield? .
i believe so!

Well, like I said, just thinking out loud.
No doubt I will get shot to pieces but let's face the reality. Things need to change up front. to convert those draws into wins!
Be gental lads. 🤔.

1.) 04 Jun 2022
04 Jun 2022 20:30:49
I agree with the Salah part - i just don't want next year to be all about his next move. Would hope Mane would stay but it is what it is. I would keep TAA where he is.

2.) 04 Jun 2022
04 Jun 2022 20:56:55
Hi Zephi, A very succinct post, clearly expressed. Agree with you on every point bar Gomez, we need TAA replacement at the back to be a bit better going forward than Gomez is, nice read though well done.

3.) 04 Jun 2022
04 Jun 2022 21:00:34
An interesting post Sephi. Thanks. Completely agree on Salah and Mane. I do feel their powers are waning and if they wish to leave so be it. They will go as legends and we can move on to hopefully better things.

I can’t agree with you on Trent moving to midfield though. A lot is being made about the final and VJ getting in behind him but it’s easy to forget that he defending very well in that game in multiple 1v1 situations which are supposedly his weakness and he covered well also. Everyone makes mistakes otherwise no goals would ever be scored!

This said I do think the midfield is the main issue to improve though. I hope our system is tweaked to allow for the two midfielders in front of the DM to attack more as I feel that would make us more unpredictable. At present all a team needs to do is sit deep and nullify the flanks then we struggle. I hope that Jones, Elliot and Carvalho can achieve this from the CM position.

4.) 04 Jun 2022
04 Jun 2022 21:05:38
People wouldn't be agreeing about selling Mane and Salah if they were ready to sign contracts! No one would have figured us out then i imagine.

5.) 04 Jun 2022
04 Jun 2022 21:42:57
Two attacking midfielders ahead of our centre midfielder leaves us far too open, it would place a ridiculous burden on Fabinho and consequently the defence.

Currently, our full backs push forward which helps create the chances. Creating chances hasn’t been an issue, it’s putting them away which was where we fell short.

We’re also short of a midfielder who can adequately cover Fabinho.

6.) 04 Jun 2022
04 Jun 2022 21:46:07
Salah gets a lot of abuse. And nobody has ever questioned Mane before a few weeks ago.
Yet it’s come down to Salah seeing out his contract that he signed for Liverpool, and Mane is leaving with causing unwanted noise before a UCL final and now is making excuses to leave the club. I think we should be showing Salah more love tbh. He’s honoured his contract.

7.) 04 Jun 2022
04 Jun 2022 22:34:09
It’s not abuse to say we should sell Salah. He doesn’t want to be here. I’m fine with that, so the club needs to get a grip and cut him loose.

For exactly the same reason we should also sell Mane.

Neither of them want to be here and therefore we should sell both.

We need the money to replace them, we work on a literal hand to mouth basis so we need every penny we can. Having both around next season does not benefit us one iota, not one.

Having them both around means that almost all of next season will be a distraction because of who they’re going to, then it both leave on a free, we’ll have no funds to replace them adequately, which is unacceptable if we waste this opportunity to get some money for them both.

8.) 05 Jun 2022
05 Jun 2022 00:06:41
@VVVV someone called him a rat the other day on this very forum - it is abuse.

9.) 05 Jun 2022
05 Jun 2022 01:32:30
Salah has been angling for a move for the last 2-3 years VVVV 😂 you wouldn’t have been to laissez faire about it any of those years.
But back to the OP, none of the Spanish teams actually want Salah, they’ve not wanted him for the last 2-3 years his agent has been hawking him around. IF they decide to try this summer I’d expect they’d probs only go as high as €50m max. It’s all great saying get rid of he wants to leave but it’s pretty obvious no-one’s chomping at the bit to get him. Even Chelsea said no when his agent offered him to them last year.

10.) 05 Jun 2022
05 Jun 2022 05:45:25
Teams have figured out our style of play? We’ve just got 92 points in the league and reached 3 cup finals, what do people want perfection? This is absolute nonsense.

11.) 05 Jun 2022
05 Jun 2022 08:50:32
How have teams “figured us out”?
We played 63 games this season and lost what? 3/ 4?

Mané scored something like 14 of his 23 goals in the second half of the season. Considering he was away at AFCON (which he won) that’s phenomenal.

Salah has just had his 2nd best goal scoring season of his career and is now adding assists to his game. He getting better.

12.) 05 Jun 2022
05 Jun 2022 09:09:57
Agree with most of that.

13.) 05 Jun 2022
05 Jun 2022 10:40:35
Agree with Fuser. Never read so much nonsense in my life. How have we been found out? We were a result and a point away from the most successful season of ALL TIME. We've dropped like 4 points in 18 league games.

14.) 05 Jun 2022
05 Jun 2022 11:26:19
We can't play with 2 number 8's and both fullbacks high up as some people want. There was a stat a year or two ago, goals conceded thru Trent's side were cut more than half when Milner played and covered for him bombing forward versus any other midfielder. Salah is usually the forward that stays up the furthest upfield too, so there is a ton of space on that side. With Milner barely playing, Henderson at the age when legs tend to go, we need an experienced right sided midfielder than can run, run and run some more while developing good defensive understanding with TAA.