Liverpool banter 10

01 Sep 2026 14:02:51
I know the ship has well and truly sailed. But I can’t help think that we had an interim RW solution staring us in the face the moment Slot got sacked.

Mo Fecking Salah! The market is dirt for that side of the pitch.

Now we’re looking at Ismaila Sa?

The mind boggled at the decision making this summer.

Other business in so far is good, but we could have just kept Mo and gone hell for leather on CM.

{Ed666's Note - according to Melissa reddy Salah didn’t want to stay at Liverpool because he felt unwanted so there was no chance of him changing his mind

01 Sep 2026 14:43:06
Iirc, it wasn't only Slot that tried to engineer his move away behind his back but Hughes and Edwards were too. That's what caused him to have that outburst in Dec. So no chance he would have stayed here since Hughes and Edwards (then) were still around.

01 Sep 2026 14:55:32
His decline was drastic, the only reason to have kept him was for sentimental reasons.

01 Sep 2026 15:24:12
Let Mo go, lad! Better to leave a hero than stay long enough to become a villain. Some of our fanbase had already turned on him even when he was firing serious numbers the season before last.

Enjoy the memories, but we need to move on. Forever a legend, Mo, but we need a different type of right winger now, as Mo isn't replaceable.

01 Sep 2026 14:04:38
I know the window isn’t closed yet, but does anyone else feel that Arsenal have given everyone a chance here?

Their glaring weakness is the forward areas and they’ve actually weakened themselves in that area.

I was terrified they might go and get Barcola and someone like Osimhen, but they’ve actually lost Trossard, Jesus and Martinelli and replaced them with Tzolis.

Bruno and Konsa keep them standing still for me, and Tzolis looks ok, but no world beater.

They just about scraped over the line last night with only 2 shots on target against a very poor Villa side who have no attacking threat. I can really see the wheels coming off for Arsenal this season and they weren’t even particularly dominant last season either.

It’s laughable that people point to them getting to a CL final as some kind of proof of their greatness. They played Leverkusen, Sporting and Atletico in the knockout rounds with the second legs at home in all of them. It’s the easiest run to a CL final in the history of the competition.

It’s all there for someone who can get it right this year. Hopefully that will be us. If we can stay in touch until Christmas I think we get players back from injury and get more and more understanding of Iraola and go on a run. I believe, I really do.

01 Sep 2026 14:14:09
The league is as wide open as it’s ever been but we have a way of operating and our other priority targets are just not gettable or even available at the moment.
Let’s see what Andoni can do with a year of coaching, after which we’ll
have sorted the men from the boys.

01 Sep 2026 14:22:07
It's George Graeme's Arsenal all over again. Score 1, then everyone defends. That's why they aren't pushed on getting more forwards, IMO, that is.

01 Sep 2026 14:28:05
Arsenal do start from a position of strength though mate, we have to remember that. They didn’t need a brilliant summer. Tzolis, Havertz and Saka is a good (not great) attack. Rice, Bruno and Odegaard is a good (not great midfield). However Calafiori, Gabriel, Saliba and Timber is the best defence in Europe. Raya is arguably the best goal keeper right now too, regardless of what the Spain manager thinks. Strong defences can and do win you titles so their midfield and attack being solid and workmanlike, might be enough to go back to back anyway.

After we signed Munoz and Jacquet, I said if we also signed Kounde, Camara and Barcola I’d back us to win the league. As it stands we’ve signed Araujo and Barcola. Honestly, I think we’ll finish 3rd this season.

Arsenal and Chelsea are the sides I think will finish ahead of us. Man City have a good team too, but their manager is rubbish and I think that will cost them. Man United have a bang average team and the new caretaker bounce they benefit from every few years is over. Spurs still look like they’re closer to a Championship team than a top 6 team.

If we manage 3rd and maybe even win a trophy then I’ll be happy in a transitional season. Iraola will either coach Frimpong and Gravenberch to prioritise defending, or they’ll eventually be dropped for Nyoni and Bradley who will do their defensive duties. I think a lot of people are wanting us to run before we can walk. Slot and Hughes did a lot damage that you can’t simply reverse overnight.

01 Sep 2026 14:38:06
Liverpool finished 25 points behind a non dominant Arsenal last season and are only 4 points behind them this season.

Massive improvement there already.

01 Sep 2026 14:39:19
If we did some normal business this summer, i.e. trying to fix our handful of obvious issues, we could have challenged.

Arsenal are as strong as they were last season. That might be enough for them this season.

They just don't give up chances and are happy to play the percentages to sneak wins.

It's a real shame. And the Premier League will suffer for teams not challenging the champion cheaters.

01 Sep 2026 14:46:37
I think Arsenal could struggle if they go behind in games but the reason I think they'll win the league is because they don't have to be great up top. If their forward players have an off-day, it's still unlikely they get beat....... Unfortunately.

Attackers win you games, defenders win you titles.

01 Sep 2026 14:50:25
I think Arsenal will walk the league, but they've definitely blown an opportunity to pull themselves far enough ahead that nobody can catch them. Definitely agree their signings are just depth signings and don't really change a whole lot.

Not for want of trying though. If Kroupi didn't get injured I think that was a realistic target for them rather than the Vini and Alvarez shadows they deluded themselves into chasing.

Personally think Havertz is massively underrated too. He is just never fit, but a fit Havertz is a massive problem for everyone else, I reckon.

01 Sep 2026 15:19:43
Arsenal’s squad is way ahead of everyone in the prem.

01 Sep 2026 15:23:27
I just don’t see enough goals in their team. They’ve been subsidising a lack of attacking threat with set pieces for the last 2-3 years, and hopefully the refs are finally clamping down on their dark arts from set pieces now.

They didn’t need Bruno or Konsa. They should’ve been going all out for a proper left winger and a proper striker. If they had a 20+ goal a season striker with Barcola on the left and Saka on the right, they could be unstoppable. As it is I just don’t see them scoring enough goals to win the league.



Even with the blatant cheating from set pieces, they stumbled over the line last season, largely due to us and City dropping the ball badly (us more than City). This season will be different.

I don’t think you can go a whole season just nicking 1 goal wins, especially without their set piece advantage. Chelsea will be better, and we will be better. Sooner or later they’ll have to try to play football and when they do I think they’ll be found wanting.

{Ed025's Note - im with you RSO and have been telling them that on the Arsenal site mate..

01 Sep 2026 15:31:43
The refs did nothing about their cheating last night. The number of times I saw Gabriel, Lewis-Skelly and Saka buy fouls was infuriating.

01 Sep 2026 15:35:01
Liverpool need to stop conceding two goals a game before we worry about Arsenal nicking 1 nil wins mate.

01 Sep 2026 15:47:16
Totally agree RSO. 👍

01 Sep 2026 15:47:55
Rios, so what you're saying is if everything goes in our favour we will win and if everything goes against Arsenal they won't win the title. Very astute observation that. I can't see us getting any injuries to important players this season and all players will hit the ground running after their long injuries. I saw it in my crystal ball.

On a serious note though, it seems you are under the impression that Barcola is the answer to all our problems?

Hey, I'm not doom and gloom and don't think we will fail miserably, but I have no rose tinted glasses on thinking we have a superior squad to our major rivals.

I do think they all have a better midfield and I think they all have better fullbacks than us.

01 Sep 2026 15:43:36
They are brilliant defensively Ed25 but surely you have try and balance that with players who are a proper, consistent threat going the other way?

Havertz, Odegaard, Saka and Eze are good players and do offer some creativity but none of them are prolific goalscorers. Gyokeres offers a bit more threat but he's still far from prolific. Arteta has just turned him into a free kick winning machine.

I really think they are being made out to be this unbeatable juggernaut but they are far from it for me. They are obviously a strong side and have a chance of winning the league but I think they'll regret not improving their goal scoring options.

{Ed025's Note - i agree RSO..

01 Sep 2026 16:15:32
I don’t think Barcola is the answer to all our problems, Mr Jones, but I think he solves a lot of them.

His pace will create space for others and it remains to be seen if Wirtz and Isak can take advantage of that. But if we can get those players performing, we are in business.

The biggest problems we have are not capitalising when we are on top and conceding stupid goals in transition. That comes from a lack of options for the player on the ball as there’s no space with everyone wanting to play in front of the opposition. Both goals against Newcastle came exactly from this. Giving the ball away on the edge of the opposition’s box and getting caught out.

With better runs and more space created, we don’t lose the ball and have a chance of scoring instead of ending up conceding.

The margins are small and Barcola could tip them in our favour.

Then, if we go in front more often rather than going behind, it changes the dynamic of the game. We tend to build up a head of steam and then get caught out on the break and go behind, which affects momentum. It’s like a kick in the teeth and it happens too often. I expect that to be fixed in the next few weeks as the players see the mistakes they are making and are coached to fix them.

If we can go in front more often, it then allows us to hit the opposition on the transition, which again Barcola’s pace can help with.

I think our problems have been largely in the fitness and mentality, not a lack of quality. Fitness and mentality can be fixed and I think it will be.

01 Sep 2026 13:25:04
For the amount we've spent on forwards and wingers, you really need two types of sixes for the system.
Remember when we had Thiago fully fit for one season alongside Fabinho.
You had a proper 6 in Fabinho and a progressive 6/8 in Thiago who could dictate the play and knit everything together, whilst also winning duels and tackles. Thiago was phenomenal.
We don't have one midfielder that I think is good enough for their position. Sobosli needs to seriously improve as an 8 tactically or positionally move to the right.


This season Grav imo will be playing for his future. He'll be far too exposed to go under the radar again. He doesn't justify the position or wages and the patience will be gone this season if he doesn't seriously improve.
Maccas clearly disposable to the club; he'll be gone next season.
Where's the future in the most important part of the pitch? Maybe the young lad might do something special.

01 Sep 2026 13:37:39
Pick any of our midfielders to bench and the midfield improves, better yet, move Szoboszlai to right back and you can improve 2 positions with one change on the team sheet.

01 Sep 2026 13:45:33
Sorry that reply was for the post below, but I agree the midfield really needs work. None of the current crop are disciplined enough... I would be inclined to play Nyoni and Macca.

01 Sep 2026 13:50:32
There’s a lot of chatter between pundits and across various forums that if Macca goes for a fee in the next window, then Camara comes in if he’s still available. Hopefully Trey steps up massively this season and displaces Gravenberch. The balance then may allow Szob to be more attacking, which is his natural instinct and skill set.

Where that leaves Wirtz, I don’t know, but again he has this season to nail down a position. I think it’s between him and Szob for the central position in the 3 of a 4231.

We’d only then need a keeper, right winger, and two fullbacks in next summer's window. Unless Connor can come back in and stay fit.

01 Sep 2026 13:58:39
The only central midfielder we have who fits the Iraola system is Nyoni.

Slob is a running 10 or wide midfielder (he is not a RB).
Macca is a good 8/10, but doesn’t have the legs or the quickness of pass to play in a double pivot in this team.
Grav has unfortunately believed the hype and all the guff Slot fed him and now feels being ‘just a DM’ is beneath him. He is a good 6, but bang average 8 - which is why Bayern sold him and why he couldn’t get a game in Jurgens last season.



This system needs 2 CM’s who are physical, have the legs to cover ground quickly, have defensive nous and can see/ play a pass quickly to release Wirtz, Isak and the wingers.

Shocking that everyone else can see this, a duffer like me can see this, but no-one at the club seemingly does.

01 Sep 2026 13:59:38
Ron, I fully agree with your first paragraph regarding the midfield. In that season with a fully fit Thiago and Fab. Thiago could pass a ball to anywhere on a football pitch while Fab could not only break up play, he could also pass a football and dictate play further forward.

Neither Szobo nor Grav can do these things and the only one that can do these things is Macca.

However, sadly, his legs are gone and in transition, he is a sitting duck. And with Wirtz in the 10 and to get the best out of him, Szobo & Grav can't progress the ball to him. Only Macca can.

So this just means that there was no planning at all on how to build the midfield to be competitive and get the best out of all the midfielders this season, recruitment and system/tactics-wise.

01 Sep 2026 14:00:05
Why not just sign Camara now? If Macca is unhappy he can leave in January.

Anyway, I think we should play Szob rb and Trey with one of Macca or Grav.

Or play Trey and Szob at cm with Macconnell at rb. He cannot be any worse than Frimpong.

01 Sep 2026 14:16:32
Think the success of this season rides on the back of Gravenbach. If he plays like he did when the title was won in Slot's season all will be good. If he pushes too far up and creates space in behind it is going to be a poor season. He needs to sit, hold and pass the ball quickly upfield.

01 Sep 2026 14:26:26
I don't think Macca is unhappy, I believe his father came out and said he was happy and wasn't looking to leave but I could be wrong.

On the other note, I agree with putting Szob at RB at least until Bradley is back and ready to go.

Then Szob could move to RW with Bradley at RB, with Trey and McConnell both vying for minutes alongside Grav and Mac.

01 Sep 2026 14:28:00
I think there's way more than just buying a new 6. So much space between our lines, making attack a lottery and exposing the defence. Get these lines more compact and better connected then everything works better; think Spain as the ultimate example.

(Ok they have a more than useful 6 as well, but I think even Rodri would not look great in our current set up...) Hopefully fixable on the training ground.

01 Sep 2026 13:23:59
A lot of you probably know better than I do about the U23 set up and some of you may even watch the games.

I feel like for the last three seasons Nyoni has been talked up as the next big thing, but then he never seems to get time on the pitch.

Nobody outside of Liverpool supporters talks about him as being a great player.

I don't doubt he is a tidy player but can someone tell me who we would bench for him to be a regular starter? I am happy to be wrong on this as I love players coming through the academy to become successful.



What player currently or in the past would you say he plays the same style of football?

We constantly hear about Ngumoha and how he is highly regarded by club and country. It would be nice to have a few kids break through together and really push any underperforming stars in the team.

01 Sep 2026 13:45:43
Pick any of our midfielders to bench and the midfield improves. Better yet, move Szoboszlai to right back and you can improve 2 positions with one change on the team sheet.

01 Sep 2026 14:00:21
I don't recall anyone saying Trey is a great player.

01 Sep 2026 14:56:41
Nyoni needs to add a wee bit of weight and muscle or he'll be bullied. Yes, he has the technical ability and is quite press-resistant. He has the vision and imagination to thread line-breaking passes. If he adds those pounds and strength, give him the minutes and he'll be our first-choice midfielder.

I see a world-class player in him, not generational but definitely capable of being a 100m-plus player by next season.
Though that ultimately depends on how the team does. We do well and lift a few trophies; he'd easily be worth 100m.

01 Sep 2026 13:15:51
If RichieH put as much work effort as the Ed's do on this site Liverpool FC would not be in such a sht state

01 Sep 2026 12:57:13
My mates friends with someone who arranges transport for some footballers. He told me today that a driver was arranged to pick up some of the attendees and Frimpong was at the party which was hosted by Callum Hudson Odi on Saturday morning at 5am.
Not sure if this is BS but wouldn't surprise me at all.

Ed's out of interest would the club have someone looking into things like this as it's absolutely shocking professionalism on his part if true.

{Ed001's Note - sounds like nonsense to me but clubs always like to keep an eye on these kind of things and would not look kindly on that kind of thing the night before a game.}

01 Sep 2026 13:14:36
Look back at some of Mo’s comments before he left. No surprises if there isn’t professionalism in some within the squad.

01 Sep 2026 13:25:54
If it’s true, duck him out.

01 Sep 2026 13:38:32
Can’t imagine Frimpong getting home 6 hours before a PL game and it going completely under the radar with management or the players.

01 Sep 2026 13:39:47
Mo was aiming digs at a couple of the new players as well as the running of aspects of things off the field. It’s not difficult to join the dots. He had declined as a player but he knew what a winning mentality looked like, and who wasn’t up to standard.

{Ed666's Note - would anybody complain if Mo was our right winger this season?

01 Sep 2026 14:02:30
Indeed, Starman. Mo said these things and if the Frimpong story is true, he was right. Not for the first time since last season, btw.

01 Sep 2026 13:44:13
That's got to be up there with the Diego Jota doesn't care about football and spends all night on his PlayStation urban myth that posters spread.

01 Sep 2026 14:11:31
I find it hard to believe tbh. Didn't we play at home against Forest? Callum apparently lives in Nottingham, so for him to have hosted the party, Frimpong would have needed to travel to Nottingham and back to Liverpool hours before the game. Unless Callum was hosting the party from the hotel he was staying at, which doesn't make much sense too, since I find it hard to believe a party was hosted in the hotel the players were staying at.

If that had happened, I'd imagine that Frimpong would have been out of the match. Iraola doesn't seem like the kind who'd take this kind of behaviour too. Feels like a story somebody concocted to put Frimpong in a bad light tbh.

01 Sep 2026 14:20:19
Ed0666 - I think Mo would complain 🫣😁

{Ed666's Note - 😁🤣

01 Sep 2026 12:56:35
Almost all of our outgoing transfers are "home grown" players, which leaves the possibility of a late speculative incoming less likely in my opinion. I suspect other than a few young players leaving on loan, we're done in this transfer window.

01 Sep 2026 13:06:35
Unless they are homegrown. 👀

01 Sep 2026 13:22:03
Bayern have a homegrown RW we could take a look at.

01 Sep 2026 12:42:00
Ed666 this has been a very drawn out window.
I was never sold on Barcola but when I see the price of some of the wingers moving I don't think it's too bad of a deal because Gakpo did need upgrading.
As for the right wing I can't think of any out there that we could bid for like Sarr or Mintah being anywhere near the price being quoted.
But I don't understand why we have not moved for a cm and a right back.
Szoboszlai could be moved to right wing and add a midfielder with some sort of self control and that's sorts out most of our problem.
As for right back there has got to be better options out there available than Frimpong who will go down as one of our worst signings ever.

He can't defend he offers absolutely nothing going forward and he is nowhere near big and strong enough to play in this league. So two more additions would have made us so much more rounded as a team. But it's taken what feels like about 10 weeks to get this Barcola deal done.
It feels like last season was just wasted because the club sat back at did not act when it should have with Slot and now they have seemed to have done the same this window.
How on earth did we let Salah leave with no replacement no one can tell me we are better off this season without him in the squad.

{Ed666's Note - excellent post mate I agree with your every sentiment. I’m just so disheartened at the moment and can’t wait for RH to just fcuk off and be incompetent and do his dereliction of duty somewhere else. According to the PSG owner the Barcola deal was only concluded with assistance of Bhattia and Gordon it just shows you how out of depth Hughes was.

01 Sep 2026 13:56:46
It has been a very strange and very disappointing window but the 4 players that have come in this summer all look like they will improve the team.
Jacquet will be class and Aroujo's quality and experience are very welcome. Both are a big upgrade on Konate and they also add much needed RB cover.
Munoz already looks like a bargain and I'm excited to see what he is capable of.
Barcola is also a quality signing. It may have been 10 times harder than it needed to be but it's done now and he will make a difference. Those 2 wingers will add a lot of much needed pace and directness.
It is insane to think that we agreed to let Mo go and still have no true RW replacement but I think that we have enough flexibility with the wingers that we have to cope until a realistic option is available. That might be Minteh in January or even waiting to sign Rayan next summer but it could be far worse in the long run to hugely overpay for a third or fourth choice option like Sarr just to get somebody in now.
The one I cannot get my head around is why we have not brought Camara in. The guy has been on our list for a while, he wants to join us and he is sat there waiting for somebody to come in and sign him.

The only thing I can think is that they believe that Iraola and his team can coach some positional sense into Szobo, Grav and Macca so that they can work as a unit. I think it is still a hangover from the ridiculous tactics that were pushed on them by Slot and Van Bronkhorst and I am hopeful that it can be rectified - Grav looked like one of the top DMs in the league 18 months ago and that player is still in there.
The same goes for the fullbacks. Iraola likes his wingers to work hard defensively and give the fullbacks more support. At the moment they are being hung out to dry by the wingers' lack of defending.
Basically, what I hope is that the 'glaring holes' that people are currently seeing can be at least patched or made smaller as the squad gets more comfortable with the new setup and tactics. It took 10 games for Bournemouth to start playing 'the Iraola way' so let's hope that things will start to look rosier over the next month or so. Meanwhile the club can appoint somebody actually capable of doing the SD job properly and we can go into the upcoming windows with a plan, some real targets and some optimism.

01 Sep 2026 14:03:46
Hughes was terrible this window, and Salah is a legend and an all time great, but our wings are better this season. We basically replaced Salah with Barcola, an upgrade in this stage of their respective careers, and added Munoz. Saying that, a good cm would have done a world of good to the balance of the team as a whole.

{Ed666's Note - Salah on the right wing this season in a new system that gives him space and not receiving the ball on the halfway line would have made me happy. Munoz can’t play every game there. Who else can play there? Slob? Rio? Barcola? Square pegs round holes.

01 Sep 2026 13:43:13
Ed666 it makes you wonder how lucky FSG where when they got Klopp because without that appointment I wonder what we would have become.
Edwards running the club into the ground wasting money faster than we could make it.


If Klopp had been backed like the last two windows god knows how many more trophies we would have won.
Just hope the new lot taking over get someone in that knows what they are doing.

{Ed666's Note - you’re making me even sadder by talking about Klopp. I feel for irola the man’s been let down by his employers and will ultimately get the blame when we lose.

01 Sep 2026 14:04:55
"According to the PSG owner the Barcola deal was only concluded with assistance of Bhattia and Gordon it just shows you how out of depth Hughes was."

Hughes must have been on the Al-Hilal "ting", init Ed?

{Ed666's Note - I’d give the job of signing players to Bhattia. He’s used to doing business with billionaires all day and he’d have a vested interest to strike the right deal for Liverpool. The more I think about it the more it makes sense. Give him a list of the players we want to sign and let Bhattia do the negotiations.

01 Sep 2026 14:33:39
I don't think the fans will blame Iraola I think 90% of them know who's to blame.
Have FSG already quit on us and just waiting till next year to sell the rest of us.
Slot Hughes and Edwards where all terrible last season H&E should have got rid of Slot last November but did not do there job and FSG once Slot was gone should have moved the other two on just as fast.
£750m in two summers and we are miles away from where we was.
Sorry ed666 for putting such a downer on the day.
On the bright side I do think Iraola will get us playing good football and I do think for the time being he will get a tune out of Szoboszlai Gravenberch and Mac Allister in midfield it will never be a great pairing who ever he chooses out of them but it will be enough to get us champions league football again.


I don't think anyone will get a tune out of Frimpong but with Gomez the new lad and Bradley to come back I think it will just about do the job.
And we will dominate most games score plenty of goals but concede far too many I feel it might be a bit like a basketball game all season unless we move for some players in January.

{Ed666's Note - fans are fickle mate

01 Sep 2026 12:27:02
If it's all zip from us, I won't complain. Just glad the window is almost shut and the manager can get on with what he has at his disposal now.

I think better coaching can improve our midfield like proper communication on who sits and who bombs forward in transition amongst others.

Actually, the more I think about it, the more I think Grav and Nyoni should be given a chance with Szoboszlai dropping into the right back position(not a fan of that but I will rather have him there than the sprinter)

Munoz has to start every game now as his run is excellent and he's a handful. I think Wirtz will benefit from him in the side. Basically, we won the league with this same midfield.

Serious question though, are the numerous injuries finally taking their toll on Alisson? I mean prime Ali will probably prevent at least 2 of the 4 he has conceded this season. Am I in the minority on this?

01 Sep 2026 12:46:31
Problem for Iraola is, as of next week the team goes to 2-3 games a week for the foreseeable, as well as a 3-week international break September-October where he will likely lose 95% of his matchday squad.

When will this training ground coaching take place?

The last 4-6 weeks have been the training ground time.

01 Sep 2026 12:52:31
He would have definitely saved the first Newcastle goal imo. His positioning was not up to his usual high standards and I felt he was a bit slow to close down the attacker. I can't remember much about their second goal other than the poor defending and lack of tackling by our players prior to that.



The first Forest goal was fair play on them and he could do nothing about the second since it was a penalty. So prime Alisson would have saved at least one, maybe two if you count Forest's first.

01 Sep 2026 12:57:20
Camara would be great, but if not then at least gives Trey & Rio unblocked paths. This season will show if they have the potential to excel.

01 Sep 2026 13:16:39
Of the two, Trey has more chance to nail down a place with us. Rio will struggle because of who he’s competing with, and his lack of real pace.