Liverpool Banter

05 Dec 2023 20:33:01
I saw a lot of comments about the Spurs kit they wore against City.
Its got nothing on this kit Arsenal are wearing tonight, proper assault on my vision!

05 Dec 2023 21:45:54
I'm somewhat distracted by Raya committing crimes against goalkeeping.

We complained about Caoimhin, but I'm pretty sure he's better than both Arsenal goalies.

05 Dec 2023 22:40:24
SR, me too. That kit is the absolute worst of th worst. As for Arsenal, This GK disaster that Arteta has created is going to cost him dearly, IMO. If Kellerher conceded goals the way Raya deed, I would be fuming as that is just wretched goal-keeping at a fundamental level. And like you, I would want nothing to do with both Raya and Ramsdale at LFC either.

As for Kellerher, I never complained about Kellerher cos to me, he just got unlucky with the first 2 goals esp. since we did not defent both phases of play well at all. The first one, goes thru his legs which happnes to every GK and that includes Alisson cos he has conceded such goals several times in the past yet nobody says a word.

The second one again, poor defending on the corner and the ball rocochets off two players and the bounce on Tettey's flick wrong fotted him even tho, Keller got a foot on it, it wasn (t enuff. Again, unlucky. Hope he does better vs Sheff. Utd.

05 Dec 2023 23:02:06
Football genius Arteta. His solution to having an over-rated dodgy keeper is buy ANOTHER over-rated dodgy keeper.

Can't wait for him to sign Onana from United next year and have a three way rotation of over-rated dodgy keepers.

04 Dec 2023 14:15:27
My brief observations of the season so far:

1. So far, so good. We are near the top without whilst still in 3rd gear. I feel like once we start playing at our full potential, we will blow teams away.

2. Goals conceded stat. People have been saying we have a good defence because we had one of the lowest goals conceded but we conceded so many chances that I do not think we defend particularly well as a team, we just have the best GK in the world who comes to our rescue. We should not conflate a low goals conceded record with a good defence. I think this is where the XG conceded stat is helpful as it shows whether it is the GK or the defending doing the work.

3. We need a recognised DM. Endo or Bajetic need to play to provide balance in the midfield. I like Endo and the fact his passing is progressive. I also heard a rumour that in Germany he conceded the most fouls without being booked so he is quite cute in that regard (if true) .

4. I hate the inverted full back tactic. I think it only works when Gomez plays as he can sit at right back quite comfortably when TAA comes in. People say that its working because we are winning but if we kept a normal formation (no inversion) we could have won games more comfortably, who knows. What I know is we are being attacked down our right all the time and lots of space is being vacated. I have read people say that its pros outweigh its cons (i. e. TAA being more creative and creating more chances) but the same would be true if TAA played in midfield as normal (i. e. a fixed position) and we had a right back who stayed at right back like Gomez or Bradley. The only difference being it would not be an over-load in the centre of the park. I am not sure how much that over-load actually helps, it may do.

5. Nunez is good and once he improves his finishing he will be very good. At the moment, it feels like he has golf clubs in his boots because most of his shots go sky-high!

6. Salah has lost a yard of pace but evolved into a great passer. The weight of his passes and his passing has really improved as he is assisting more. We are no longer reliant on him but play as more of a team now.

We have a good squad. I particularly like Harvey Elliott coming on to affect games as a sub and the fact we have Jones, Endo, Bajetic, Gakpo, Jota who can all come in and do a very good job.

04 Dec 2023 16:21:13
Enjoyed reading that redhead.

My only counter discussion is we’re 2nd in the league ahead of City and that’s without starting a recognised Dm.

Endo could have started more games but would that have affected the Spurs result or made a difference against Luton where we had about 75% possession. Or made a difference v Chelsea and Brighton. Who knows

As bad as Jota, Matip and Mac seem to be amongst the LFC fans online we’re doing pretty well this season with all 3 of them contributing significantly.

04 Dec 2023 17:38:38
Can Nunez improve his finishing that I'd the question? Gakpo for me is the better player out the two.

04 Dec 2023 18:37:45
OP, the whole DM thingy is a bit overblown at this point, IMO and even I who wanted quality DM even tho Endo is very good and knows the position inside out, am starting to move on from it.

Klopp before the the City game, explained exactly what the plan is with Macca and he said exactly that Macca is great at the DM position IF we remain compact out of possession and press well for the most part. Correct me if Im wrong but were we not doing the above with Fab at DM in our pump under Klopp 1.0? Think about it. This is what we are now and we need to move on from this cos I have.

And I see people saying like "we need a DM" everytime we concede which is bonkers. So would a DM have helped defend the setpiece that led to to their second goal? Rodri, the best DM in the world has been woeful in the past few games, not cos he has been playing poorly but cos he has been exposed and left on his own with oppising team's mid's running at him. Do you see anyone accusing or blaming him for the ship load of goals they are conceding? I don't.

So for me, Klopp has decided to go with this regardless and like it or not, we have the 2nd best defence in the PL and we are still in a rebuild so I take the positives and not dwell on the other stuff. Just my opinion.

04 Dec 2023 18:49:00
Nice one, redhead100.

Legs and firepower has got us here. Let's see where we are after the New Years Day fixture vs Newcastle.

Tactics are still questionable and DM needs solving.

04 Dec 2023 18:20:46
I'd agree with most of that especially Salah and his assists. There's a few on here including myself who question klopps teamsheet.
The biggest question I feel has this team already peaked for this season? Hopefully not.

04 Dec 2023 22:29:55
Great post that mate.

05 Dec 2023 01:49:28
Salah has lost a yard or two of pace. Very obvious to see and is not suited to a traditional winger sort of role. But a new dimension of his game has opened which even he might not be aware - key pass/ assit

We all seem to enjoy and like this new aspect.


Macallister scored a beautiful goal but he is being passed by opposition as a thin paper sheet and he is very slow. (slower than milner)

Endo is better of the too for the role.

Graven - he looks appealing with few things he does but final pass is astray / ponders and loses.

Szoboszlai is top drawer and will get better. Need to carefully handle or we might run him to ground like Andy.

Gapko has a terrific shot from little or no run. ala Sturridge.

04 Dec 2023 10:18:31
Brought my son to the match yesterday and got seats beside the kop. Only our second time there, WHAT A BUZZ. Thought we missed Ali, the back line, midfield and forward line didn't function as well as it can and we still won 4-3. There is something very special about this team.

04 Dec 2023 12:45:31
Thats something your son will remember his whole life! Nice choice of game!

04 Dec 2023 12:56:16
I was in the anfield road end! hope you and the lad had amazing day that ending was simply magic only word for it being there!

04 Dec 2023 14:42:34
Glad you enjoyed the game, lads. It was crazy at my local, as well owned by a huge LFC fan from Kossovo.

04 Dec 2023 14:55:16
If you don't mind me asking how much did you pay and from where?

04 Dec 2023 07:34:20
How do you think Darwin played yesterday? Given the chances he had, I think it’s fair to say that he should have scored?

04 Dec 2023 08:15:38
Love him, creates absolute havoc and makes loads of chances for himself with his movement and workrate. The one he hit the bar yesterday he basically sprinted half the pitch so I do feel for him but his finishing is just not good enough. Fatigued or not when he gets the chances He will consistently cost us points until he becomes less erratic.

The flip side is would Gakpo get in the same positions to miss these chances and I don’t think he would so it is a real dilemma. Have to stick with Darwin imo but don’t think we will win the league with him until he becomes more consistent in front of goal.

04 Dec 2023 08:24:22
He contributed to many of the goals. He was decent. Overall, his game is improving massively. His press is so much better now. His inventiveness, passing, decision making are all making huge strides.

Obviously, his finishing choices and execution has not hit the spot yet. That can be a thing that clicks very quickly, but can also be a thing that never comes. Personally, I think it will for him with some more maturity. Just some patience. I personally think he is the future of our club and will be the main man when Salah retires/ moves on.

04 Dec 2023 09:59:21
Mo had an easier chance the Nunez.

I think we need to stop with this micro analysis of every hit and miss with Nunez.

every game he starts, him and Mo are developing better chemistry and they are creating for each other in every match. They are a real handful.

04 Dec 2023 10:40:30
WDW3, Darwin was brilliant overall, IMO. The chances? Sure he should have scored BUT cos Salah missed an absolute sitter at 3-2, a way easier chance than the two he had so he (Salah) should definitely have scored. And Salah should have squared to Diaz for a tap in instead, he lashes it straight at the GK.

Darwin's qualities simply make him unplayable when at full pelt and wwe saw raw evidence of that vs Fulham. And his linkup play was also very good and was defensively very good, all the things Klopp actually wants him to do. He hit the post on the stretch and the other one, I just think he slipped right before making contact. Just a bit unlucky, IMO.

Darwin, was involved in everything good that we did and he was a menance to them all game. Very good performance. The chances? We all know who missed sitters last night and it wasn't Darwin.

04 Dec 2023 10:44:40
I think Fatinworks, he has all the tools in his shot etc. to be a world class finisher.

We see it so often with high energy players that their minds also run 100 miles an hour. It can take these types of players longer for that cool mind in front of goal to come. But when it does, watch out. I love him.

04 Dec 2023 10:50:42
He reminds me of Suarez when he first came to Liverpool. Suarez's finishing wasn't the best at the start and he was a master at hitting the woodwork constantly, but it eventually came to him and i'm sure it will for Darwin.

04 Dec 2023 12:57:32
Nunez may be a brilliant all-round player (I’m a huge fan), but his finishing is unserious and needs to improve. Stop missing chances damn it. Regardless of the great work he puts in to fashion the chances, they need putting away.

04 Dec 2023 13:06:39
I don't think we have the luxury of waiting for him to hopefully get his act together. We can't carry a Timo Werner when we're competing against City. I think we should move him on while he still has some value.

04 Dec 2023 13:26:25
The man is way up there when it comes to emotion, work rate, commitment and determination. Judging from the way he celebrated yesterday's goals you can see how much he loves football and the club.

Someone just explain to him that purposely hitting the woodwork is a "wow" thing only in training, it doesn't count during real games. The objective is to hit the ball inside the woodwork. 😋.

04 Dec 2023 14:48:22
Random Red, that's for Klopp to decide and as long as Darwin is doing and playing the way Klopp wants and developing nicely as he is doing, the luxury is there so if you are impatient then, I propose we all just accept it cos Klopp will decide all of that. I've accepted that playing w/ o a normal DM as Klopp has explained why before the City game. It is what it is.

That said, I agree that he needs to be finishing his chances even tho as someone said on here, the way he plays and at the speed he plays, it can be hard to get your head right as the two chances showed yesterday, IMO.

04 Dec 2023 15:13:00
Someone said earlier that yes Nunez misses chances, but would our other forwards even be in those positions to miss. He's certainly capable but last year we said hopefully he will come good, this year we are saying the same thing again. How long are we going to wait for him.

04 Dec 2023 15:27:43
Shame whenever Klopp picks Jota the same fans don’t just accept it.

04 Dec 2023 15:35:21
there is no doubt he needs to improve his finishing and i do hope he goes through what Suarez did - average to master in finishing

i would also not trade his passion, energy, workrate, movement, its precisely because of the way he plays that he and the team gets so many chances. mind you, if he didn't attack the ball, the final goal from TAA to win the game wouldn't have materialized

on his workrate, its not just in the attacking end, so many times he runs back to defend when we are being hit on the counter, he may not always win the tackle but he is always tracking back to close down spaces and passing lanes

on his mentality, any lesser striker would go into hiding after missing all these chances, but he keeps getting run, making those runs again and shooting without hesitation, that for me is a strong mentality

and on missing sitters, well, even the great Salah missed the exact same shot Nunez did against Luton, we just have to accept we don't have a Fowler in this team and he was indeed one rare breed.

04 Dec 2023 16:51:52
We re moving on Nunez now aswell. Ha ha. I would love to see some of these posters as DOFs. Not of Liverpool of course but with other clubs I very much do not care about. And just watch it all burn.

04 Dec 2023 18:51:18
Random Red, you are clearly an impatient person. I get it BUT Klopp will not sell Darwin to please you nor will he sign a "true" DM (cos clearly, Endo is a fake one) just to please others.

And if you are not ready nor lack the stomach to persevere with a clearly talented player with a brilliant work ethic, the passion and desire to be great with a great mentality who needs some grooming in just about one aspect of his game then, that's on you and nobody else.

Also, remember this: Darwin won't quit on himself nor will Klopp quit on him cos you quit on him. That's not how any of this will play out either.

04 Dec 2023 19:44:33
Granted he needs to cool down a bit in front of goal, but other than Salah's slide ball in behind, are we really creating for him? He creates an awful lot himself through sheer effort.