Liverpool Discussion posts

14 May 2024 20:18:39
With no announcement yet on Arne Slot
What's the latest on pre season and the return for that.
Does the manager have complete say on when they return? Any travel plans that the new manager might have. Will he have enough time to organise?
With International football too. The players will need a break giving them a later return date.

I would have thought plans would have already been in place for this. Does anyone have any idea of how this works?

{Ed002's Note - The tour is organised and when the season ends there will be announcements. I don't understand your concerns.}

14 May 2024 21:17:09
Pep doing that spitting thing is rank.

Never mentioned on punditry though.

It's horrible.

14 May 2024 19:18:29
With a new manager due to Slot in very soon seemingly, what changes can we expect backroom staff?

In the modern game managers due to tend to have done their homework on the squad their likely to inherit and have clear ideas of who's key and who's dispensable.

We cn only guess, but its my thinking that Van Dyck will be his captain, along with Trent, Jones, Macallister, Szlobo and Allison.

the rest i think we will see.

thoughts anyone?

14 May 2024 21:23:28
Honestly
If we have Virgil as captain and Trent as vice captain - based on attitude then we are struggling

Virgil has developed his habit of throwing his hands up in the air and Trent looks largely uninterested.

14 May 2024 18:53:40
People are rightly calling out our defenders, the amateurish system we play, as well as the positioning of our right back throughout prolonged moments of a match. This has honestly been the case for the last two years, and I am amazed Klopp never found a solution. In fact, I would say his failure to adapt is negligible at best.

However, the one thing that genuinely concerns me is Van Dijk.

I have never seen Van Dijk retreat as much as he has in recent matches, and it has highlighted the fact that his pace is completely gone. I didn't realise his pace was gone until recently, but he struggled to keep up with a lot of people, and didn't look comfortable extering himself, at all. Even when it was required, which is rare because more often the RCB does the heavy lifting, in terms of energy expenditure, covering for Trent.

It was alarming habit during the match, Van Dijk just kept sprinting back to the keepers box, never once looking to engage the opponent. It happened so often, and cost us a goal. It was almost like he wanted to create the illusion that he was in position doing something, but you afforded the opponent that space and time, through poor game management.

I will also say that I think Van Dijk is a terrible captain, more in line with Bruno Fernandes than Henderson. The amount of times a goal goes in, and he throws his hands up in the air, rolls his eyes, looks at a teammate and then shakes his head is infuriating. It is poor. A real captain motivates, encourages the team to up their levels when things are going wrong. Van Dijk is incapable of this.

Say what you like about Henderson, but he was a genuine captain. When the going got tough, he would be around the players, barking instructions, motivation. He would lead the press from the off, continue to provide instruction, motivation until things fixed themselves. Then, he would keep doing it, to ensure standards didn't slip.

Hendo was never an incredible player, but he was a brilliant captain. He, and Milner, their leadership has been missing this season. Had one stayed, I believe the standard and professionalism by some players would not have slipped. Easy to say in hindsight, but we really missed that leadership.

Honestly, with Van Dijk's pace being gone, we can not play this high line anymore, as he is always the deepest defender playing people onside. He must make Nunez look incredible in training, because Van Dijk sits so deep that even Nunez can't be offside.

For me, at 33, and 1 year left on his contract, it is time to say goodbye and bring in someone younger, with pace that can play our highline. I suspect Saudi will come in for him, I know Real and Barcelona are linked, but there is no way they will pay a significant fee for a guy that is 33 years old. No chance.

14 May 2024 20:57:13
If we hadn't vvd this season we definitely wouldn't have won the league cup and I'd reckon we would be in real scrap to get champ league position. He dipped last few weeks no doubt but up to that he was 1 of the best, if not the best, cb in league. Our problem is if vvd ain't doing everything himself defensively we frigged. Far too dependent on him imo.

14 May 2024 21:27:11
I agree with most of your points Mango, and I also get Diggers points about VVD being good up until this recent drop off. I actually think you are both right. I think VVD has been awful recently, has not shown good captain behaviour, but also has been our best defender this season. Trouble is, we have been conceding all season long even when people were saying VVD was back to his best. So he's the best of a bad bunch, or at in a team of poor tactics at any rate. If he's lost his pace, we should play a low block when defending. Our pressing game is useless currently and we don't break at pace when we win it back, preferring to recycle possession and look for openings slowly rather than the old Klopp lighting counter style, so we might as well sit deep. I think all our defence would be more effective this way.

14 May 2024 12:51:53
Would people take raphina as a replacement for salah? Seems to be a better player now.

14 May 2024 15:14:16
That’s a NO from me, I’ve watched Barcelona a number of time’s this season 20+, Raphina can’t get playing time in his preferred position on the LW, Yamal has taken that from him.

Sure he in flashes looks good, but after Leeds (I never paid much notice when he was there), he doesn’t look that impressive to me, especially after getting sent off for a very stupid action. He to me is overhyped, Barcelona appear to want him gone (can u confirm Ed’s? ) according to the commentator in a few matches. It would have been interesting to see how much game time he would have got if Barcelona wasn’t hamstrung by the amount of injuries they had, bc it would been much lower than it is imo.

As we talking, Felix not for us either imo, although he does have a very good skill set, just not enough graft, add the fact he’s on big money.

I’d have Pedro, Gava, Yamal, and the young LCB who at 17 looks very good, but LFC couldn’t afford any of them.

14 May 2024 19:38:26
Absolutely not Magico. He’s simply not good enough, bar one freak season at Leeds he’s largely been a very mediocre player. He’s also 28 this year, so he’s not suddenly break into being a player who scores ten goals plus a season, if he’s the best we’re looking at then I’d write next season off. There’s a reason Barcelona are keen to get rid, the same as they were keen to get rid of Dembele.

14 May 2024 11:37:17
Macallister around our penalty area is a liability and so is Endo.

14 May 2024 10:27:06
Alan Varela = Excellent DM option
Teun Koopmeiners = Midfielder, not sure he is what we need though?
David Hancko = Very good LB option
Mohammed Kudus = Very good RW option but expensive, and no release clause.
Willian Pacho = Don’t know how good he is never seen him play, but we seem to be interested.
Johan Bakayoko = Had a good season but not sure he is what we need to replace Salah?

Out of those players we are linked to I would love to see Varela, Kudus, Hancko join with Inacio signed as a CB too, not that likely I know as that would take at least £230m.

14 May 2024 10:50:04
Hancko is a left sided CB mate. Of those players I’d like Koopmeiners and/ or Varela. Not really seen the others play much other than Kudus. And Kudus is never worth the reported £85m but out. That’s an Antony-esque mistake. He’s not worth a club record fee with his 7 league goals. If Elliott started as many league games as Kudus has i reckon he’d score more than that. It’s just not an upgrade as far as I’m concerned.

14 May 2024 12:19:49
Hancko and Inacio are both left sided CBs. Are we binning Virgil then?

Kudus is a relentless pressing machine in the Sadio Mane mould. I can see why our data folk might like him, despite his poor goal return for West Ham.

Alan Varela has less recovery speed than MacAllister. That would be a concern given the profiles of our existing midfielders. He's more like Jorginho than Mascherano.

If PSG are serious about Luis Diaz, then I would be asking them for Manuel Ugarte.

14 May 2024 12:47:41
We need varella.

{Ed002's Note - Alan Varela (DM) Barcelona may offer a profit to Porto and a player in exchange. PSG has a declared interest and want to play him beside Ugarte. An option for Manchester City to replace Phillips, but not first choice although they have spoken with Porto. Liverpool were interested before his move and could look to add him, but it would be a significant kick in the gonads for Stefan Bajcetic. Chelsea sent scouts but there is no declared interest. Dortmund will not match his buy out clause. Porto has no interest in selling the player who only joined them in the summer of 2023 unless someone offered his buy out clause in a single payment, then the player will be consulted.}

14 May 2024 15:57:41
He is nowhere near ready for the first team and will warm the bench and play League cup to gain experience. We need a starting DM desperately.

14 May 2024 18:13:22
What’s his buyout clause Ed?

{Ed002's Note - I would not get in to the finances.}