After Tiago Ilori and Fabio Borini, Liverpool have suffered yet another pre-season injury setback, and this one is sure to disappoint legions of expectant fans.
According to the Liverpool Echo:
* £25m man Adam Lallana suffered knee ligament damage during a training session in Boston.
* He will not require surgery, but will be out for around six weeks.
* Lallana will miss Premier League fixtures against Southampton, Manchester City and Tottenham.
Earlier today, Raheem Sterling revealed that the LFC players are doing 'killer' double training sessions during their USA tour, so perhaps that had something to do with the injury?
Given the nature of the injury, though, it's likely Lallana was on the receiving end of a bad tackle, and my money is on Lucas taking him out with one of his trademark mistimed challenges.
It's a massive shame for Lallana, and Liverpool, but (luckily) the Reds have enough players to cover, and this may open the door for Lazar Markovic to take a more prominent role in the early stages of the season.
Author: Jaimie K
According to the Liverpool Echo:
* £25m man Adam Lallana suffered knee ligament damage during a training session in Boston.
* He will not require surgery, but will be out for around six weeks.
* Lallana will miss Premier League fixtures against Southampton, Manchester City and Tottenham.
Earlier today, Raheem Sterling revealed that the LFC players are doing 'killer' double training sessions during their USA tour, so perhaps that had something to do with the injury?
Given the nature of the injury, though, it's likely Lallana was on the receiving end of a bad tackle, and my money is on Lucas taking him out with one of his trademark mistimed challenges.
It's a massive shame for Lallana, and Liverpool, but (luckily) the Reds have enough players to cover, and this may open the door for Lazar Markovic to take a more prominent role in the early stages of the season.
Author: Jaimie K
I would have thought and liked Lallana to start the season and give Markovic a bit more time to settle in a new country and league. He still doesn't have to start the first few games as we have the numbers to play without him but I would think he would be getting more game time earlier than I would have liked anyway. Good luck to him and get well soon Lallana.
ReplyDeleteSh!t!
Bad news and just hope it's not a sign for his career at Liverpool. Just hope it's not a case of giving it rest only for a later decision to have surgery - which I think is what happened with Enrique. At least looks like we finally clos to getting Lovren.
ReplyDeleteOf course its never good to have an injured player, but at the very least it will give us an extra boost when he comes back.
ReplyDeletePoor Lucas, i'm sure he's gutted.What a way to welcome a player to his new club.
ReplyDeletePlus whenever players get injured these days they always give a worse case scenario of how long a player will be out. Its not as bad as they first feared so with any luck he'll be available sooner rather than later. Also we have got a lot more attacking midfield options now, should not be a big problem.
ReplyDeleteOn the positive side we've still got more than a month to buy replacements with the Suarez millions! Never heard of anything so crazy as the Reds 'keep-fit' men kicking off the training sessions with double dollops straight after a long lay-off. Nice one Bren!
ReplyDeleteSIGH...we need our epl ready players well to be ready. markovich and can will need some time to bed in so we needed lallana of all people to be ready with fire and brimstone for them first three games. I really think we need to get a vidal/;reus type player now, although brendon is being wise s far in his signings. i remember lallana had a similar injury at soton last season , hope its not....well i wont say anymore except WE MUST DO WELL THIS YEAR.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of injurys. How lucky are we that we sold Andy Carroll? Talk about sick note.
ReplyDeleteRed paul in fairness so are manure and prob most of the clubs now intensifying training not just LFC. opening day is not too far off as some folks seem to think, either for getting match ready or getting the players we need transferred in.
ReplyDeleteBig blow losing the player that's meant to replace King Luis individual brilliance with abit of his own magic. Guess it doesn't matter now we're going for even more midfielders. I want us to sign Shaqiri and leave it at that. Then sign Lovren, Remy and Ricardo Rodriguez from Wolfsburg for £20M. That should sort our LB position for the next 5 years. Rodriguez scored 5 goals and got 8 assists last season. He also got 2 assists at the World Cup. He's the best available LB, and he has a massive attacking threat. Signing him and Shaqiri will be good chemistry. Shaqiri is like Carlos Tevez. That hattrick he scored at the World Cup was all Tevez finishes. Beastly and smashing it in. If we added Paul Pogba for £45M plus Fabio Borini. We will have a deadly squad.
ReplyDelete-----------------Mingolet/reina
Flanagan------Skrtel-------Lovren---Rodriguez
-------------Gerrard---------Pogba
Sterling/Shaqiri---Markovic--------Remy
--------------------Sturridge
Subs, Enrique, sakho, hendo, can, coutinho, Shaqiri, lambert
what a pointless thing to say by sugesting it was lucas' fault. you are deliberatley taking a swipe at a player when there is no need to at all. as much as i do think lucas' time is up at the club, i am a big fan of his attitude and he has always given everything for his team and the only reason he gives so many fouls away is because he is the only covering player, carrying gerrard at times and providing sole defensive cover. given his two horrific injuries and his love for the club and the fans who actually have supported him i think he deserves a bit more respect than you're not-so-veiled insult. as for lallana, i'm personally not sure he will be too missed, but im just annoyed such a big money signing will start off like this. hopefully its not a sign of things to come.
ReplyDeleteGive over, it's just a joke. I considered putting a smiley next to the sentence, but I figured people are switched on enough to know it's a joke without having their intelligence insulted by little smiley faces. Obviously, I was wrong.
ReplyDeleteok he was definitely not brought in to replace suarez's "individual brillaince"
ReplyDeletelucas sniper.
ReplyDeleteyou did not like my reply?
ReplyDeleteWhat happened to Ilori?
ReplyDeleteHahaha it would be Lucas' fault. Lazy journalism.
ReplyDeleteWhat an untimely injury! We are playing away to Man City and Spurs in the 2nd and 3rd league game respectively. They are going to be real tough fixtures for LFC in the opening month of the new season.
ReplyDeleteWe still have to find defensive covers for LB & RB before the start of the season. People can drag their feet on and wait till the start of the season, slowly approaching the end of the transfer window. Then we will start to panic and look for last-min panic buys.
Oh happy days for a Southampton fan. Shame his career will stall now he's in a big pond.
ReplyDeleteThats a huge blow now where are we to find such a quality bench warmer me thinks Russia is a good place to start.
ReplyDeleteNow our other piece of over priced muck gets to prove himself Markovic should be just as good playing on the left Coutinho is flying so the AM position will be filled properly.
First "Amazing" Can then "class" Borini after that Lallana. "Incredible" Remy next?
ReplyDeleteThis will be the heading of Jamie's next article
What a scumbag comment no wonder u cannot keep players at your shoots club haha relegation ahoy soon
ReplyDeleteBest wishes for him - get well soon man.
ReplyDeleteOn playing terms, absolutely no loss; if fact a little gain/respite for BR/LFC. Now they 'll be shocked 2 months later that they have wasted 15mn (10mn is good enough to buy someone better, unless English).
This is from another site, but so nicely summed up that I couldn't resist
ReplyDeleteWhy Adam Lallana was bought for 25mn?
Reason 1: 'He creates goals.'
True, but not as much as teammates Steven Davis, James Ward-Prowse, nor Gaston Ramirez. Ward-Prowse at £25m is somewhat justifiable given his age and potential. He'll probably be better than Lallana in three years, when he turns 22. Lallana is 26, if you were wondering.
Reason 2: 'He's a great passer.'
No, actually he's not. He posted an 84.7% passing rate last year and an 80.7% passer rating the year before, respectable, yes, but not when you consider his pass back percentage to be 50.3% and 52.4% respectively. He's great at passing backward, that's about it.
Reason 3: 'He's English.'
Oh yes, of course, he is made of that special pedigree that once 'ruled the world'. Lallana is such an 'English' last name, isn't it? And let's get something straight, he's 'White English', because a player of any different skin color and posts the same numbers, regardless of his country of origin, is dreadfully mediocre.
Reason 4: 'He's a model.'
Where do I begin here? A model what, exactly? Just another check against the underlying racism of top-flight football and the market-driven money that runs it. Yes, he's a looker, quite possibly his best tribute, though not Justin Timberlake hawt, which I personally fancy.
Lallana is nothing special and he'll disappear under waves of mediocrity once he starts to see the pitch in a Liverpool kit, but not before he plays second fiddle to Beckham and trumps up his modeling career, of course.
This reminds of me of another situation, let me see... White, overpaid, Englishman... oh, yes, Andy Carroll! How could I forget quite possibly the worst bit of business in Liverpool history. Dalglish has Suarez to thank for saving his arse though, had he not bought the Uruguayan, King Kenny might have been looked upon with more senile light. Oh there I go again, mentioning that name... he's not supposed to participate in footballing activities which apparently includes everything on the internet involving a ball and feet.
Lallana's injury is a blow but luckily we have enough depth to atone for his injury. We could play a front three of Sterling-Sturridge-Remy with Coutinho behind or we could play with Markovic as well. I just hope other players do not get injured as well.
ReplyDeleteIf you dont like "white" english players why are you supporting LFC friend? We are a "white" english club with "white english" legends. Let me tell you man u copied LFC's model of success from the 80s and it worked, many white english players, many of them playing for england, this has worked for them and for liverpool. Look at spuds, brought a bunch of foreign noo epl experienced players and got thrashed by us and had their coach fired. Your post is wrong oon so many levels...
ReplyDeletewhy dont u give brendon the fifa coins you buy players with on fifa 14? In real life there are many aspects to consider not just cash. G back to playing fifa haha
ReplyDeleteThe person the who wrote this must have based this on reverse racism and must be black? Clearly has a problem with "White, overpaid, Englishman"?
ReplyDeleteSports lover, LFC Fan?
ReplyDeleteI have my doubts. Why do you have a problem with White, overpaid, Englishman.
Those who are ranting me as racist must be illiterate & bigot themselves. Did any where I ever mentioned "White" idiots?
ReplyDeleteI have problems with LFC paying 3/4 times on English players (Combined with fee & salary); I have problems with LFC wasting 100mn+ on Carroll, Downing, Adam & Henderson, which put us at least 3 years behind. I have problems in LFC paying 25mn for a 26 years old reserve for a very average England team & then bargain for Shakiri with 14mn. I have problems with LFC paying 15mn for Allen, when Arsenal might buy Schienderlin for half the money (& after 3 years inflation).
I have nothing against English/British players, but I am not going to take 300K/week for Rooney when Muller, Rues & Neuer combined earn less; I 'll not take 30mn for Shaw when that amount can land probably all 3 of Rodriguez, Digne & Rojo. & I have problems for MU paying 17mn for Young, a "black Englishman" just as LFC paying 25mn for Lallana.
I support LFC as a club, as a brand; not as a English club. & I like KK, Rush or SG equally as Barnes or Suarez. Is there any rule that, if you don't like your club to be ripped off for players Nationality, you shouldn't support the club.
Yes, I have problem with "Overpaid" part & everyone loving the club should have, but did I ever mention "White". I doubt who much "sports lover" you are after adding that extra word "White".
ReplyDelete"but so nicely summed up that I couldn't resist"
ReplyDeleteThis is from you post where it mentions White, overpaid, Englishman which suggests that you are fully in agreement with what you got from another site.
Seeing that we are on the subject, do you know how many overpaid 'black' players there are in the EPL?
Are you comfortable with what I did there?
I copy pasted the post just to make sure that the actual words are not twisted & I made sure that the "credit" for good or bad doesn't cast upon me. Your response is against a post of my own words.
ReplyDeleteYou don't agree with the post, fine; but don't attack personally.
I agree with your general point but you clearly need to word things better. Liverpool is not a "brand", it is a football club with a very long tradition. Football is not a selling initiative. As a man once said, " Football is not life and death, it is more than that".
ReplyDeleteYou do not know the semantics behind a transfer and neither do I. Nobody knows what happens there. British players are very important for the club as they form an immediate connection with the fans and do not need time settling in. Foreign players do and sometimes are never able to settle. How do you know that 30 million will give you those three players? It is easy saying that from behind a computer but the reality is that these players might not want us, we might not want them. You seem to imply that because these players are British, they are expensive. That is because of the economic situation. Clubs in Spain and Italy are in debt and therefore sell players for cheap. But, even foreign clubs have bargaining power like Benfica and Porto. Regardless of nationality and transfer fee , we need to support the LFC players.
Who wants to join the league I created on the Fantasy Premier League?
ReplyDeleteWas going to call it the Liverpool Kop League but not sure how Jamie would have felt about it so called it "This is Fantasy Football".
Code to join this league: 437552-113476
Yeah, cause you know better than the manager, coaches and physios about how to prepare players for a season
ReplyDeleteBelittling?
ReplyDeleteYou're not a LFC supporter
ReplyDeleteMax of 3 players from any one club, right?
ReplyDeleteLet me guess, you picked Allen, Sakho and Ilori?
:)
Why would I pick Ilori when he is most likely to go on loan ;-)
ReplyDeleteIt is like asking we why some fans select mancs to be in their squad.
I will try but I've never done that before :P
ReplyDeleteWhat are either of the racists above adding to this thread Mr puppet master?
ReplyDeleteI would have said Alberto but he's already been shipped out. I guess your other option is Origi when he signs.
ReplyDeleteRVP a few seasons back was the perfect choice but I just couldn't do it. I can't play as the enemy on Footy Manager or on Fifa either. Makes me feel dirty.
It is just for fun. Hey, you might even get the chance to add Pogba or Vidal to your squad, even if he does not join LFC :P
ReplyDeleteMost of LFC's biggest legends are not English
ReplyDeleteI think RVP will have a much better season under Van Gaal. Might be a good shout...
ReplyDeleteYou are missing the point. Why the need to make reference to the colour of a player?
ReplyDeleteDrogba is probably earning 3 times the wages of Lallana. Does that give someone the right to refer to Lallana as a "White, overpaid, Englishman"?
I think they all will, unfortunately...
ReplyDeleteI'm in. We using disqus names or real? Doesn't matter?
You can go with what you like.
ReplyDeleteNeither are you Bob you are just another one who cannot think for himself but you do not know that yet.
ReplyDeleteI have never seen you here before so i must pertain that you are another Man united troll.
Well done, you just gave credibility to a totally baseless rumour that Lucas took out Lallana in a training session.
ReplyDeleteReally tough break for the player, it will put quite a bit of pressure on him because he won't hit the start of the season with a good pre-season under his belt. Lallana would be expected to feature very heavily for Liverpool and now his first couple of appearances will be tentative minutes off the bench. Not really want you want from your number one summer signing. It's like JKs prediction come true. Still, mentally weak players don't captain their club from the championship to an 8th place finish and Lallana will just be itching to go when he gets his chance. It's a very manageable injury and he'll be running quite soon, just avoiding too much lateral movement and contact for the next 4 weeks while he heals. Lots of hard work with the physio will actually leave him physically stronger so it's just the time out that's an issue. He's actually in the best place in the world to suffer a knee injury, the world best orthopaedic doctors work around there. He'll have had detailed scans and will get the best possible treatment. I guess if there was ever a time that's good to suffer a knee injury it would be now.
You are worse just a frightened little troll go have cry princess.
ReplyDeleteThanks. I understand your point. However, the value for English player is only because of quota, trust me not for economic situation. I don't think UK is completely open in EU like other major countries & still most English Managers prefer home grown players. Otherwise, I doubt how many of English Internationals would have started for EPL teams. Regarding loyalty, trust me, English players are as (you put words) as one can think. Just think about Rooney or Ashley Cole situation.
ReplyDeleteLeave it. If JM believes that Drogba at 36 can deliver what he did at 28, trust me, I 'll pay him 5 times than Lallana.
ReplyDeleteI'm not missing the point. Neither of them make sensible points mate
ReplyDeleteLucas is backup to Gerrard so it would make sense to have him as part of the squad however Lucas may look at his current situation and realise that he may not be playing all that much this coming season.
ReplyDeleteCompetition for places is going to be hectic!
I think, Allen and Can are also viewed as backup to Gerrard, but I won't be upset if Lucas stays. He is a player we can trust to step in when needed and maybe the extra competition will spur him onto better form than we saw from him last season
ReplyDeleteAllen and Can will be fighting for a place in the 2 ahead of Gerrard and will be competing with Henderson and the likes of Coutinho and Lallana.
ReplyDeleteGerrard is not going tpo be stripped of the holding role.
If we sell Lucas, who can play the holding role?
ReplyDeleteDo you mean who else can play the holding role as Gerrard is first choice?
ReplyDeleteLucas has never been the same since his Injury, I like the guy, but he is just not good enough for LFC going forward,
ReplyDeleteseriously, is Lucas the way forward, not for me, we should be moving on from the Lucas's otherwise we will be left behind AGAIN, and we know how that feels. I could name at least 20 players worldwide in his position, that are better than him, maybe it sounds cruel, but thats the truth, we need to be ruthless, irrespective of reputation, loyalty, or ego, and move them on,
I must admit I been disapointed with Lucas for parts of last season, and I do not think he'll ever hit the form again he had under Dalglish... However I still think Can and Allen need to prove they can dislodge him, which imho they haven't really done up till this point. Gerrard is getting on age (or could get injured) and I'd think Lucas, even as back-up for Steven Gerrard would be likelly to get game time. I say keep our experienced options, and if Can/Allen can make him unimportant later, sell. No reason to rid a decend loyal squad imo.
ReplyDeleteArsenal are set to sign Calum Chambers for £16m.
ReplyDeleteSouthampton are losing all their top players but making a massive turnover profit by doing so. Will they stay up though?
The silver lining is that we've still got coutinho who is looking very good atm
ReplyDeleteI think we'd all be OK if he was sold. Better for him, better for Liverpool. He's in no way a poor player but he doesn't seem to fit in the system and, just like you say, he's down the list when it comes to getting time on the pitch. He'd be used in a very limited sense, nothing more than a squad player to cover for a drastic injury crisis. I guess for the team it wouldn't be a problem to have him around, after all players do get injured and we might get very unlucky, but it's no longer a good fit. The writing was on the wall once Stevie G was given that holding role. Lucas just isn't the kind of deep-lying player that Rodgers likes and he's spent too many years as a defensive minded player. He'll be much more valued somewhere else and if Rafa wants him at Napoli I think the deal needs to be pushed through.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure we are ready to let go, Lucas is a good solid player, that said, I feel we need an up-grade if we are to build on last season. I'd be happy for Lucas to move on if we bring in that upgrade... as I don't see Can as an immediate replacement. As for letting him go out on loan, no, I'd be wanting a straight sale.
ReplyDeleteIf we buy vidal which is a long shot then yes we should sell.. If not keep him and let him be a useful,squad member
ReplyDeleteIts about time we sell Lucas. were entering the Champions League and we need explosive players only. Can, Henderson and Gerrard are all explosive players. if we can Add Paul Pogba for £45M plus Fabio Borini and have Moussa Sissokho as an Alternative if that dont go through we can definately sell Lucas. if we bid £20M for Shaqiri and £18M for Ricardo Rodriguez we will be ready for the Start of the season. then we sell Allen for £8M, Lucas for £8M, Assaidi for £7M, Coady for £2M, Borini to Juve hopefully in a Pogba deal and that will be £26M recouped in sales.
ReplyDeleteSquad:
Goalkeepers: Simon Mingolet, Pepe Reina, Brad Jones
Centre Backs: Dejan Lovren, Martin Skrtel, Daniel Agger, Mamadou Sakho, Tiago Ilori
Full Backs: John Flanagan, Glen Johnson, Ryan McLaughlin, Ricardo Rodriguez, Jose Enrique
Defensive Midfielders: Steven Gerrard, Emre Can
Centre Midfielders: Jordan Henderson, Paul Pogba
Attack Midfielders/No. 10: Adam Lallana, Xherdan Shaqiri, Coutinho, Suso
Wingers: Raheem Sterling, Lazar Markovic, Jordan Ibe
Strikers: Loic Remy, Daniel Sturridge, Rickie Lambert
from the £26M recouped from sales plus the £75M Suarez fee, that will be £100M. plus Rodgers original £70M kitty, that will be £170M. if we added Pogba, Shaqiri and Rodriguez to the list our spending for the summer will be £150M. that will be a squad capable of wonders. even with injurys and alot of fixtures that squad should compete strongly until at least January, to see if there is a gap to be filled.
The thing with Southampton is they have even more youngsters coming through the academy with Ward-Prowse and Cork. We should loan some of our youngsters out to them as a favour for giving us their players.
ReplyDeleteI do not think we need him anymore. We have Stevie, Hendo , Can and Allen. Plus, we have Rossiter in the academy. Lucas was a good player and a nice bloke but his time has passed.
ReplyDeleteDon't know what everyone sees in Lucas,he's had a handful of good games over the years at LFC and that's it.Hopeing Napoli buy him and put the money to better use.
ReplyDeleteSure, they have many talented youngsters but it will not help to promote too many and then they have an awful season. It will see careers end before they have even started.
ReplyDeleteThey have lost Lovren, Shaw, Lambert and Lallana who made up the backbone of their team plus they have a new manager. It is either going to be a miracle if they stay up or it is all going to end in tears for their fans.
I know how Koeman works as I have tracked his Feyenoord work and he took them to 2nd in the Eredivise. He is no numpty. They have made two good signings and could make more. They were linked with Firmino and have close to 100 mil to spend. They have the money to buy good players. It would be a shame to see them go down. I hope that we thrash them in the first game and after that, they play well.
ReplyDeleteI remember a debate after the Villa game last year - which was about the first time SG started playing the deep quarterback role. At the time I was in favour of Lucas playing the defensive role for stability, whereas the majority were in favour of SG playing there.
ReplyDeleteNow on reflection, we know by playing SG there we have a far better attacking team - and for the majority of games thereafter we slaughtered teams with speed of play and dynamic interchange of passing. But we were also very open, often conceding goals, but since we were regularly banging in 3,4 and 5 goals it was no problem from Jan-Apr.
We came unstuck in the last 5-6 games when teams figured us out, knew to try to hold out the onslaught and then come back late in the game (Norwich/Palace as good examples).
Personally, I do not feel the SG quarterback role is a success. Many may disagree, but I would have a Lucas type player protecting the backline, which would provide protection when the full backs roam forward.
Lucas is a good solid reader of the game, and plays it simple. Admittedly there is always room for improvement, ie someone who is more mobile and has pace. Which is why I think Can/Henderson should play that role this year.
When he plays the defensive role - he does a decent job.
ReplyDeleteHowever, when he plays in the Hendo role he is awful, since he does not have the pace or mobility. Horses for courses.
I do not think that Gerrard is going to play all the matches that we have. I agree with you in a general sense. Against a fast, pacy, counter-attacking team like Real Madrid, Gerrard will not be able to cope. Aston Villa also play a similar style and that is why we always struggle against them. I think Can is going to play a lot more than expected. He has the build and the technique. But, Gerrard has performed amazingly well there. In the last 5-6 games you talked about, he came unstuck because Hendo got suspended and Lucas and Gerrard is a mistake waiting to happen. Hendo is the key to our team.
ReplyDeleteYep, so I would keep Lucas in reserve as backup holding mid. If we play the diamond, it'd Can holding, Hendo left, Llanana right and Sterling at the tip.
ReplyDeleteCrucially, I'd go back to SG playing off Sturridge and bring him off after 60mins with fresh legs.
Note (Logan!!) there is no place in the above for Allen :-)
Gerrard playing of Sturridge? Those days are well and truly over.
ReplyDeleteAllen will get his chances, there are many games to play next season.
Did a quick comparison between Coutinho, Sterling and Lallana to see who might be favoured for the number 10 role. Very close, Just shows how tight the competition will be this coming season. Stats via Squawka.
ReplyDeleteThere was no info available for Markovic playing for Benfica in the Primeira Liga last season so did not include him.
In some games we need Gerrard and a recognised ball winner, not Gerrards' best asset ..
ReplyDeleteWinning the ball is not Gerrard's function. The two players ahead of him get assigned to do that.
ReplyDeleteIt's not often you admit you're wrong :-)
ReplyDeleteLucas has not been the same since his injury. He is now almost as mobile as Gerrard and from the defensive mobility between Gerrard and Lucas the team cant carry both which was evident in games last year when they played together - One of them has to go, and we all know that 'one' can only be Lucas. In my ideal window we can get good money for Allen also, and bring in a young mobile CM that can contribute is most aspects of the CM role preferably Pogba or perhaps more realistically Junior Malanda.
ReplyDeleteYeah right ..
ReplyDeleteAllen? the invisible girl from the fantastic 4?
ReplyDeleteMy dream was that we would sell lucas and allen this summer. but if we keep one i think lucas because he is atleast strong and has the ability to give a performance in him.
What is Yeah right?
ReplyDeletefrom what i have seen from lallana last season is when he plays good is great and simple. the interceptions stats by him are very impresive. i think he should play between can and hendrson behind the striker with rotation to left wing
ReplyDeleteIt's me disagreeing with your assertion. IMO, none of our midfielders other than the two above, know how to tackle. Ideally we need another Monster/Momo type.
ReplyDeleteWhat is Gerrard's function then playing as the Pivot?
ReplyDeleteIs Pete a made up name then? Oh you wild thing;-)
ReplyDeleteHe's there to control the game.
ReplyDeleteOk so now what is the purpose of the two central midfielders playing ahead of him?
ReplyDeleteThat's a good question, which would have received a lot more attention, if SAS hadn't bailed us out most of last season.
ReplyDeleteThose two central midfielders are there to do the pressing, chasing, back tracking, winning the ball etc.
ReplyDeleteNoty sure why you had to mention Suarez & Sturridge which had nothing to do with the question.
The Henderson and Allen did the chasing ok, I'd question the rest. They are meant to do the creative bits too. SAS did that themselves for most the season. Lalllana, Markovic, Can and perhaps another, have been signed to improve in these areas.
ReplyDeleteAgain, competition for the two ahead of Gerrard will be tight.
ReplyDeleteEmre Can is not included as there was no selection of info on Squawka while he was at Leverkusen.
Markovic will not play as a CM. He ain't one.
ReplyDeleteWhatever, he can play wide right/left or as a number 10. That aside, we need ball winners in the squad, if Lucas goes, that leaves Gerrard to protect the back 4, the rest are too lightweight.
ReplyDeleteEmre Can.
ReplyDeleteFrom what I've seen, tackling isn't one of his better assets. I hope I'm wrong.
ReplyDeleteIn regard to Agger I saw on another website that of all our central defenders Agger averaged the most points per game and conceded the least goals per game last season. I know these are stats and may be warped due to the opposition played, however I found this interesting considering Agger is the most frequently referred to as surplus to requirements. Maybe it's because of his injury record. Anyway I would argue others should leave before him.
ReplyDeleteWe no longer have a need for a "specialist tackler" and haven't for some time (since BR came in).As you alluded to, other than lucas there's no real alternative at that particular role, yet lucas hasn't played regular recently. Loganlfc is right, with our pressing system, the two in CM ahead of gerrard have the responsibility to win the ball back. its why that worked a treat away v man u when we won 3-0, allen and hendo were brilliant at it, and that's the system we#ll go with under BR. Can has a brilliant engine, him, hendo, allen, lallana, coutinho and suso even can all do the pressing game well. even if PHIL's tackling success isn't great, his attempts at tackling was one of the best in the PL last season. That's what our game is based on, win the ball back through pressure and then have players who can control the ball (gerrard, as wel as those highlighted to actually win it back too)
ReplyDeleteDo you follow the Bundesliga? i did not watch much of Leverkusen or Can but I have read and heard many say that this Emre can is like a tank.
ReplyDeleteagreed. Lucas with his lack of an engine can only play at one pace and in one position. The rest of our midfielders in 'Football manager' terms would be DM,RLC Att mid. Lucas would be DM.
ReplyDeleteGood Engines ... are we taking about cars?
ReplyDeleteAllen/Henderson and the word brilliant are mutually exclusive.
With no Suarez, that system may not work.
Hopefully the signing of more expansive footballers, will compensate.
However, those type of players, may not be the best at winning the ball back ... hence the need for a ball winner .. look how BRILLIANT the monster was for Argentina.
He is an elegant player. Never seen him play, other than his two short appearances for us to date. The YouTube stuff shows his offensive side. Against Preston, he dived in a few times ..
ReplyDeletein a two man midfield Lucas is flippin crucial as Kenny found out. In a three unfortunately for him NOT SO CRUCIAL. In a three the collective blend of pace and discipline more than makes up for the 'destroyer'. If Gerrard can learn to 'switch on' in the Defensive midfield position in a three man midfield then anyone can because Gerrard has been one the most undisciplined least tactical aware players of his generation. In a two man midfield as demonstrated at the world cup he still doesnt fully understand the role.
ReplyDeleteFunny how some insist that we need this massive giant to cover for our defense yet Lucas our only proper defensive midfielder is not really built like an ox is he?
ReplyDeleteEmre Can is going to have fun in the EPL :-)
Is the Lucas reference supposed to be a joke? I can't tell.
ReplyDeleteWe've just spent a fortune on more expansive players. I doubt we will EVER see Gerrard, Allen and Henderson in the same team.
ReplyDeleteOk so if you have never seen him play other than his two short appearances for us to date (friendly matches) then how can you come to the conclusion that tackling isn't one of his better assets?
ReplyDeleteFrom what I've seen and read. As I said, I hope I'm wrong.
ReplyDeleteyeah its not necessary. Its great if you find the right one but they are so rare. Diame like most 'monsters' are not up to the task tactically or technically which is why only a manager like Gerrard Houllier or Kenny would even consider signing them.
ReplyDeleteWhere did you read that tackling is not one of his better assets? I for one have not read or seen anything of the sort.
ReplyDeleteHow many goals did we concede last season? I doubt we will see the three you mention, start many games together this season. Seeing Allen/Henderson described as being brilliant is hilarious! Unless we are talking about ENGINES and running ..
ReplyDeleteCan played at left, back right back and center back last season. If Sami trusts him in there then he has seen something because Sami has the feel for defending. On the other hand it may be an area of his game that is not the strongest in his skill set but still very good..... oh i dont know!
ReplyDeleteI take it you did not watch the Tottenham match where we won 5-0. Allen and Hendo were absolutely amazing and it looked like the Spurs players did not have room to breath because they were surrounded be Hendo and Allen. That and the Ar5ena1 games were the best of our season.
ReplyDeleteCan is a bit of an unknown entity. Only regular watchers of Bayer Leverkusen games can tell how Can plays like. Preseason means nothing. We saw how Aspas played in preseason and then how he did in the league. We have to wait and see how he plays.
ReplyDeleteI've read quite a bit, but like Youtube, nothing explicitly defensive; it emphasises his flexibility (he's played in many positions, which at a push, could be alluring to defensive capabilities) /attacking/passing prowess.
ReplyDeleteA great team performance, I seem to remember Stirling and Lucas playing well in the middle too.
ReplyDeleteYour not fooling anybody, 'Stuart'...
ReplyDelete:)
I like Lucas and I have a huge amount of respect for him however I don't really see a place for him in Rodgers team built on pace and dynamism. What little of this Lucas did have is gone since his injury. Serie A would probably suit him down to the ground now at this point in his career. Either way I'll always think fondly of Lucas. All round good guy
ReplyDeleteI am on a roll today!
ReplyDeleteJust saw that ACM want to dump Balotelli on Arsenal for 7.9M plus Joel Campbell. So yet another team wants to get rid of Balotelli and his baggage. So to recap...Inter sells him to City for 26M, City sells him to ACM for just less than 18M and now ACM is trying to sell him to Arsenal for about 15M (7.9M plus JC current, post WC, MV of about 7M). I guess the free market knows something after all. I'm so glad his name is off the LFC radar scope.
ReplyDeleteHe wins a decent amount of balls in the air though. Something Allen struggles with when playing that position.
ReplyDeleteAmen brother.
ReplyDeleteThe way we keep being linked to MF after MF in the press tells me that Lucas is probably not long for us. I agree he has lost speed and maneuverability after the injury...which is probably why he commits so many collision fouls. He stops guys to be sure, but he doesn't get any more yellows per match than anyone else and as soon as he gets the first one he has to rely on skills he doesn't really have anymore.
ReplyDeleteof course you're right, we conceded lots of goals so the midfield must be the problem *facepalm*. and yes, you can check online, im sure all the reports are still there, allen and Henderson were singled out for praise after the match at old Trafford by all and sundry, so the only thing that's hilarious is your attempt at wumming. also, which "3" did I mention? I mentioned a bunch of players who can play ahead of gerrard and can do the closing down brilliantly. that's something that BR seems to be going for, having depth so that we can change players around when needed instead of like last season and having no quality options
ReplyDeleteFor those who are interested. I created a league in the Official Fantasy Premier League 2014/15 game.
ReplyDeleteCode to join this league: 437552-113476
There are already 3 regulars who have joined. Pete, Greg (not sure which one) and Siddharth.
Hoping more will join...
Link
ReplyDeletehttp://fantasy.premierleague.com/
what are you on??? of course SAS did the rest... theyre the SAS! do you see barca telling messi to stick to putting the ball in the net? is Ronaldo confined to doing a particular job? when you have one of the most lethal attacking partnerships in world football, you take advantage of it
ReplyDeleteOf course I am. Gerrard is still our best player. In that match we scored 5, the team played well, in fact our best performance of the season. However, let's not forget that Suarez got two, he put two on a plate and he had a major part in Henderson's goal.
ReplyDeleteDo you want to see the doctor? you're getting you're conversation with someone else confused with me. I was talking about united 0-3 Liverpool.
ReplyDeleteHow cool is Squawka...
ReplyDeleteSorry, thought we were still on the Spurs game. Your post was too long for me ..
ReplyDeleteHenderson is too lightweight? Are you serious? He's solid
ReplyDeleteHenderson goes through a sh!t load during a match but many are unwilling appreciate it.
ReplyDeleteYeah the report I read indicated that there wasn't really much contact, but it's not like they'd come out and say one of his teammates did it to him. Just another example of what can happen when trying to get players back to fitness after a break, even with extreme caution.
ReplyDeleteIf it was contact related my money would be on Lucas too, probably not only a mistimed challenge, but one when Lallana's back was to goal, outside the box, and moving away from the goal...how many of those did we see towards the end of last season ugh.
Could also give Markovic time to bed in / come off the bench by starting games with a diamond. Gerrard Henderson Coutinho with Sterling at the tip, Remy/Lambert and Sturridge up top. I really like the idea of Lambert and Sturridge combining - Lambert is great with the ball and particularly good at dropping deep, receiving it, and then making an incisive pass to put someone through on goal. Sturridge, with his pace and finishing, could benefit enormously from that sort of combination play and with so many other threats coming out of midfield it would be easy for Lambert to find that space between the lines to receive the ball then make that pass.
Oh my god yes it's insane, I feel bad for the guy. Not just lucky we got him out the door, but that transfer fee we got was far more than I could ever have dreamed of.
ReplyDeleteTo be fair, at the time I wanted to keep Andy and thought LFC treated him badly but now I'm sure Brendan seen something he didn't like
ReplyDeletelmao lucas trademark mistimed challenges
ReplyDeleteNot sure think they are to similar to each other, having them both on the pitch could be extremely counter productive, but who knows
ReplyDeleteI know this is a joke, because of the smiley.
ReplyDeleteI've filled my quota for the year now. 364 days till the next admission...
ReplyDelete...when Suarez returns because of his deep unbreakable love for the club?
ReplyDeleteSounds more like lazy tackling. I'm sure Lallana didn't get his leg stuck in the presses because Lucas was half-arsing his side job.
ReplyDeleteit could be that's what you were meant to think ......:-/
ReplyDelete(⌐□_□)
ReplyDeleteI'm impressed
ReplyDeleteWe have the real money, remember?
ReplyDeleteFSG are businessmen, right? If BR can convince them, and I think he can based on his results so far, that what we need is that expensive player in order to keep the money coming, I think they would sanction that kind of move.
ReplyDeleteVidal has won it over and over again without real threat- everybody who watched Serie A knew they will win it even when Roma made a 11 games streak. Now with Roma and Inter pushing for it- they can only lose it, and in CL he surely realizes they don't stand a chance, Specially with magician from the bench leaving and club's policy of most expensive player being payed 15 mil. Euros! We are far more competitive in CL than Juve, and EPL is the best league in the world.
Just saying, there is a chance, though there are other clubs that could offer more to him..
"It was an injury that he received in a simple drill with no pressure on him"
ReplyDelete