Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has made one (unnecessary) change for tonight's Europa League clash with Augsburg, which sees 'amazing' striker Daniel Sturridge start his fourth game in a row.
TEAM: Mignolet, Clyne, Lucas, Sakho, Moreno, Can, Henderson, Milner, Firmino, Coutinho, Sturridge
SUBS: Ward, Toure, Benteke, Origi, Smith, Teixeira, Chirivella
* For some inexplicable reason, Jurgen Klopp has dropped Kolo Toure and replaced him with Lucas Leiva, who is not a dedicated central defender.
* In my view, this is a massive poke in the eye for Toure, who has helped the club keep two clean sheets in a row. Why does he need to be replaced? Statistically, he is Liverpool's best defender over the last two games, and deserves to be in the team on merit.
* Lucas can do a job in defence, but this smacks of trying to keep him happy rather than making a decision based on the best interests of the TEAM.
* Some will probably argue that Klopp is 'resting' Toure for the League Cup final, but if that's the case, why is he the only player being rested (!)
* What happened to the merit system? What kind of message does this send to Toure and/or other players? Sakho deserved to be dropped more than Toure, who has been steady and reliable all season.
I'm sure Lucas will do a good job, but that's not the point. Toure - recently hailed by John Aldridge as 'magnificent' - has played superbly well over the last two games, and contributed to two clean sheets in a row.
As such, how does it make sense to drop him and mess with a defensive unit that's functioning well? It's change for the sake of it rather than change that's an absolute necessity.
It's good to see 'amazing' striker Daniel Sturridge in the starting lineup, but for me, Toure's omission sours the whole evening.
On a separate note: watching footage of Augsburg fans rampaging through the streets of Liverpool (and urinating en masse against the side of peoples' houses) just reminds me once again why I stopped going to games.
I don't want to be associated with that kind of disrespectful mob-mentality; it's not endearing and/or funny - it's a disgrace, and brings football down into the gutter.
PL
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Author: Jaimie K
TEAM: Mignolet, Clyne, Lucas, Sakho, Moreno, Can, Henderson, Milner, Firmino, Coutinho, Sturridge
SUBS: Ward, Toure, Benteke, Origi, Smith, Teixeira, Chirivella
* For some inexplicable reason, Jurgen Klopp has dropped Kolo Toure and replaced him with Lucas Leiva, who is not a dedicated central defender.
* In my view, this is a massive poke in the eye for Toure, who has helped the club keep two clean sheets in a row. Why does he need to be replaced? Statistically, he is Liverpool's best defender over the last two games, and deserves to be in the team on merit.
* Lucas can do a job in defence, but this smacks of trying to keep him happy rather than making a decision based on the best interests of the TEAM.
* Some will probably argue that Klopp is 'resting' Toure for the League Cup final, but if that's the case, why is he the only player being rested (!)
* What happened to the merit system? What kind of message does this send to Toure and/or other players? Sakho deserved to be dropped more than Toure, who has been steady and reliable all season.
I'm sure Lucas will do a good job, but that's not the point. Toure - recently hailed by John Aldridge as 'magnificent' - has played superbly well over the last two games, and contributed to two clean sheets in a row.
As such, how does it make sense to drop him and mess with a defensive unit that's functioning well? It's change for the sake of it rather than change that's an absolute necessity.
It's good to see 'amazing' striker Daniel Sturridge in the starting lineup, but for me, Toure's omission sours the whole evening.
On a separate note: watching footage of Augsburg fans rampaging through the streets of Liverpool (and urinating en masse against the side of peoples' houses) just reminds me once again why I stopped going to games.
I don't want to be associated with that kind of disrespectful mob-mentality; it's not endearing and/or funny - it's a disgrace, and brings football down into the gutter.
PL
Post your scores here
Author: Jaimie K
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