Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers is renowned for his progressive football philosophy and insistence on playing the beautiful game the right way, and Reds fans will be hoping he can replicate Swansea's style of football at Anfield. Implementation of Rodgers' possession-based approach will require the right kind of players, and Wimbledon legend Robbie Earle is not convinced that Liverpool's current squad is good enough to play 'Tiki-Taka' football.
In a discussion on ESPN last night, Reds legend Steve Nicol argued that Liverpool have better players than Swansea, and further insisted that their superior quality would make it easier for Rodgers to implement a 'Tiki-taka' style of football.
Robbie Earle disagreed with Nicol, and emphatically dismissed the possibility that the current Liverpool squad would easily adapt to Rodgers' highly technical, possession-based philosophy. He said:
"I disagree with Stevie [on the issue of LFC having better players than Swansea]. The current set of players at Liverpool are not good enough to play the Tika-Taka style of football.
"You don't just have a few games in pre-season and it's all done - it takes years to develop.
"I think Brendan Rodgers has a lot of big challenges, and if he's going to move the club forward, it's a 3-5 year process"
I broadly agree with Earle here, though there are definitely players in the squad who are capable of adapting very quickly, specifically the following:
- Maxi Rodrigues (90% passing accuracy)*
- Lucas Leiva (85%)
- Daniel Agger (84%)
- Martin Skrtel (83%)
- Steven Gerrard (83%)
- Jordan Henderson (81%)
- Jay Spearing (81%)
* Only 12 Prem appearances
Stats: OPTA
I've seen little evidence to suggest that the rest of the first team squad is good enough to play like Swansea City, let alone Barcelona (!), and I think last season's performances proved that. Last season's stats also prove this. According to OPTA:
* Swansea's Ashley Williams completed more passes than any other player in the Premier League. He was also the league's most accurate passer.
* Swansea had FOUR players in the top 10 table for completed passes/passing accuracy. Liverpool had none.
* Swansea's Leon Britton was the most accurate passer in Europe last season, ahead of Xavi, Silva and Busquets. Joe Allen was also in the top 10. Liverpool had no one in the top 20.
* For overall passing accuracy, Swansea - as a team - were 6th best in Europe only 4% behind Barcelona. Liverpool were not in the top 10.
Most of Swansea's players achieved a passing accuracy rate of between 85% and 93%, and if Liverpool are to emulate that style, then practically the entire squad will need to improve its passing accuracy next season, and many players will have to improve by a factor of 10%-15%, which is going to be a tough ask.
Jaimie Kanwar
In a discussion on ESPN last night, Reds legend Steve Nicol argued that Liverpool have better players than Swansea, and further insisted that their superior quality would make it easier for Rodgers to implement a 'Tiki-taka' style of football.
Robbie Earle disagreed with Nicol, and emphatically dismissed the possibility that the current Liverpool squad would easily adapt to Rodgers' highly technical, possession-based philosophy. He said:
"I disagree with Stevie [on the issue of LFC having better players than Swansea]. The current set of players at Liverpool are not good enough to play the Tika-Taka style of football.
"You don't just have a few games in pre-season and it's all done - it takes years to develop.
"I think Brendan Rodgers has a lot of big challenges, and if he's going to move the club forward, it's a 3-5 year process"
I broadly agree with Earle here, though there are definitely players in the squad who are capable of adapting very quickly, specifically the following:
- Maxi Rodrigues (90% passing accuracy)*
- Lucas Leiva (85%)
- Daniel Agger (84%)
- Martin Skrtel (83%)
- Steven Gerrard (83%)
- Jordan Henderson (81%)
- Jay Spearing (81%)
* Only 12 Prem appearances
Stats: OPTA
I've seen little evidence to suggest that the rest of the first team squad is good enough to play like Swansea City, let alone Barcelona (!), and I think last season's performances proved that. Last season's stats also prove this. According to OPTA:
* Swansea's Ashley Williams completed more passes than any other player in the Premier League. He was also the league's most accurate passer.
* Swansea had FOUR players in the top 10 table for completed passes/passing accuracy. Liverpool had none.
* Swansea's Leon Britton was the most accurate passer in Europe last season, ahead of Xavi, Silva and Busquets. Joe Allen was also in the top 10. Liverpool had no one in the top 20.
* For overall passing accuracy, Swansea - as a team - were 6th best in Europe only 4% behind Barcelona. Liverpool were not in the top 10.
Most of Swansea's players achieved a passing accuracy rate of between 85% and 93%, and if Liverpool are to emulate that style, then practically the entire squad will need to improve its passing accuracy next season, and many players will have to improve by a factor of 10%-15%, which is going to be a tough ask.
Jaimie Kanwar
Ah...give me a break. Let the guy manage one match at least. Too early to judge I say, LFC squad played their worst but still finished above swansea so certainly we can play equally good if not better.
ReplyDeleteI think Liverpool's passing last season wasn't too bad, just needed a creative player behind the strikers and a finisher. I also think Rodgers will get Liverpool playing better passing football season by season if he's given time which he should be and he has a record of getting the best out of average players, that will come in handy after what Kenny left him.
ReplyDeleteI don't foresee Tika-Taka a problem with any of the LFC players. Accurate passing is a basic requirement for any professional footballer, least to to say amateur footballers as well. Positioning and awareness to continuously receive and distribute the ball without interference from the opposition improves the ball retention stats. Without being an official coach, our current LFC players will adapt easily and starve the opposition to death (Reina, Agger, Johnson, Gerrard, Adam, Lucas, Suarez, Henderson). Then again, wasn't this the Liverpool way of the past! The problem lies in our shot to goal ratio which was abysmal in 2011. Only if we converted 20 more chances.....I am dreaming!. Come on boys, just get the ball in the net. YNWA
ReplyDeleteThose OPTA stats are a bit suspect for example Skirtle & Carra better than Agger? Spearing better than Adam? and where is Luis? Not convinced with those stats one bit.
ReplyDeleteThis is why Rodgers said in interview: "we need 2, 3,or 4 players to implement the style". Maxi, Suarez, Lucas, Stevie and even Hendo can develop this in their game quite quickly.
ReplyDeleteRogders is looking to bring in an Attcking mid that understands his style or a similar tika takka style already (e.g. Sigurdsson).
2 wide forwards, probably from Spain or Holland. We were looking at both Muniain (LW) and Susaeta (RW) before Rodgers came in and they would be ideal but not sure how releastic.
Its going to be interesting see who they go for.
all i know is every day were falling further behind the big boys, as fans we haven't been informed on much, all still up in the air regarding a new stadium, new players , whats available ect. our playing squad has nosedived from world class to bog standard in 3 years. every time we find a decent player one of the new up and coming big clubs nab them, they almost use us as a scouting system. there is only so long we can trade of our heritage, every season man city, chelsea ect are getting more and more support from asia and african countries and as we know that financial income is very important. sad times indeed.
ReplyDeleteTo explain the difference between LFC last year and Swansea...
ReplyDeleteLiverpool played like this pass, pass, pass, pass, pass, pass, cross, shot.
Swansea played like this pass, think, pass, think, pass, think, pass, think, pass, think, pass, think, pass, think, pass, think, pass, think, pass, think, final pass, shoot if clear opportunity arises - if not pass back recyle and build again.
I missed Agger off the list by accident. Good spot!
ReplyDeleteRe the others you mentioned:
* Charlie Adam = 79%
* Luis Suarez = 75%
i think the problem with liverpool last season was how static we were.we never had midfielders getting in the box.
ReplyDeletespearing and henderson played liked they were glued to their spots in midfield.
how many times did we see balls into the box but nobody in there.
we have players who can adapt to rodgers style but definitely need some new players in.
One stat that you failed to mention,we finished 4 places above Swansea with so called "Inferior players" Just an observation
ReplyDeleteShouldn't Liverpool be finishing above Swansea?
ReplyDeleteIt's a sad, sad moment in Liverpool's history when people want us to play like a team that finished below us in the EPL and even acquire some of their players. Is the squad really that poor?
ReplyDeleteWhat's even more worrying is our rumoured transfer targets and lack of transfer activity. Maybe Rodgers has a trick or two up his sleeve. But if the rumours surrounding Siggurdsson are to be believed, I worry that if the likes of Gylfi won't reject all suitors to come to Liverpool, Rodgers may be unable to attract any players of substance.
Not really considering Barcelona play that way and the Spanish national team who are world and European champions.
ReplyDeleteHi Lads, with the comment above re think pass think pass,isnt that the reason for Swans having more passes ratio than any one else?and when you look at Alonso`s raking passes ratio (a 30 yarder) as opposed to the liitle triangle keep posession type passing, now which type would you like to see at Anfield? in context with the way the game is panning out of course, i`d love Alonso back personally. YNWA
ReplyDeleteDon't read into the stats as the bible. Just score goals and more goals. We have the nucleus of a goal machine with Luis, Stevie, Andy, Charlie, Maxi and maybe Hendo (for 2011 he was overwhelmed with the demands of LFC as global club). Not forgetting Skrtel and Glen penetrating from the back. Just improve the awareness to position and get the geometry & power right when shooting at the posts. YNWA
ReplyDeleteSorry Jamie k.....You make out that you agree with Earle and disagree with Nichol....Then you ask shouldn't Liverpool be finishing above Swansea ?...Well NO!! not if as you imply Swansea's players are better players than Liverpool's players they shouldn't ....But they did Finnish higher....In my eyes you have to be wrong on at least one of your points.
ReplyDeleteNot if we have "inferior" players. Scary to think of where we are headed if we just appointed a coach with "superior" players and finnished below us in the table.
ReplyDeleteLiverpool are still a great team, and, yes, they did end the season higher than Swansea. But, remember that when the two teams met it was Swansea who triumphed - a nil-nil draw at Anfield and a one-zero win for the Swans at the Liberty. Personally, I believe that both teams will develop well under their new managers.
ReplyDeleteshow me a striker.
ReplyDelete'demands of lfc as global club'
ReplyDeletewas hendo made go on promotional tours twice a day?
lame excuse for his poor showing.
All this talk about the players needing years to learn Rodgers' style of football... - Rodgers was in charge at Swansea for two years. Including the season in the Premiership. A season where a bunch of lower league players imposed their brand of football on the Premiership pretty much from day one.
ReplyDeleteAnd for all the talk of Martinez creating the platform that Rodgers came along and built on, Sousa was at the club for a year before Rodgers arrived. And it's hardly like Liverpool were playing like Stoke under Dalglish anyway was it?!
Liverpool fans (and a lot of the players) are accustomed to pressing football from the years under Benitez. Liverpool fans (and a lot of the players) are accustomed to pass and move football from the time under Dalglish.
Our players are well capable of adapting to Rodgers' style, and any talk about a 5 year rebuilding process is crock of sh!te as far as I'm concerned.
i don't know if i am reading your comments right did you just say "goal machine" and include the names Andy, Charlie, and Hendo? I don't know if I watched the same games you did last season. I was under the impression that we need to improve our goal scoring average. Well with Kenny's vigorous activity last January he brought people in that helped open the flood gates for the goals to come . Things must have happened that way in those games you watched that i didn't
ReplyDeleteI expect Robbie Earle has carried this great knowedge of a passing style of play from his days at Wimbledon...
ReplyDeleteLiverpool played some of their best football in recent times under Benitez. Coincidentally it was tiki-taka football. Anyone remember that?
ReplyDeletei can help here. I think that when it comes to whom spends the most on their players Liverpool should be finishing above Swansea. Carroll cost 35million big ones, Downing cost 20million big ones, Sunderland also made a tidy profit on Henderson. I don't how much Swansea last transfer dealings but i can bet we bought the more expensive talent.
ReplyDeleteWhen it comes to playing style and technique then Swansea should be finishing above Liverpool. They were more attractive to watch and they have gained a lot of fans.For a team that has only spent one season in the top flight they conducted themselves really well, and I feel that if we don't take our game to the next level they could really overtake us in seasons to come. BR left a great foundation at Swansea for any new manager to build upon.
Midfield is the only area i would say Swansea were better than Liverpool last season and that was down to the fact Kenny preferred physical players over more technical players but this season i am expecting Liverpool to be lot more technical under Rodgers and that would take care of the passing stats.
ReplyDeleteFickle fans seem to overlook the fact that LFC played about 1000 passes more in the opposition's half than Swansea last season (who had the lowest pass completion rate in the final third of any team in the league!). Had Dalglish's detractors bothered to watch even half our matches last season they would've noticed we were a Jelavic and Lucas short of a top four finish. Check out http://www.eplindex.com/9035/premier-league-passing-trends-2011-12.html for more...
ReplyDeleteFickle fans seem to overlook the fact that LFC played about 1000 passes more in the opposition's half than Swansea last season (who had the lowest pass completion rate in the final third of any team in the league!). Had Dalglish's detractors bothered to watch even half our matches last season they would've noticed we were a Jelavic and Lucas short of a top four finish. Check out http://www.eplindex.com/9035/premier-league-passing-trends-2011-12.html for more...
ReplyDeleteRob u cant mention Rafa on this site,only watching us beat Real 1-0 at their place when we had torres,alonso, mascherano arbeloa (before Carra screamed at him)we were actually numero uno in Europe and all because of Rafa,but then he only finished 2nd and never won the league,what did he do for LFC????? YNWA
ReplyDeleteLove it, great post BUT was`nt it Kenny who did`nt sign Jelavic?
ReplyDeletestill wont forgive JH for his handshake refusal of Kenny at the Cup Final. YNWA
You're reading it wrong jdevitt - Swansea had lowest % of total passes completed in the final third, not the lowest pass completion rate in the final third.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that ppl are on a nonsense the way that they talk about the quality of our team though. A major problem was that we had a totally out of his depth Spearing (or out of position players like Gerrard or Adam) in the middle of the park, and totally ineffective wide-men offering us little to no penetration from the flanks.
These are easily sorted though and once done we're right back in the thick of things.
I really love this topic. I think that Robbie Earle has read my mind. I have on more than one occasion at least posted on this site that I believed that Mr Rodgers would have to bring in a different kind of player than what we already have here at Liverpool if he wanted to transform the team in the shortest possible time. I think that the current squad can adopt to the new tactics but it won't be right away. Some players will do adapt quicker than others.
ReplyDeleteA player like Maxi Rodriguez would definatley adapt easier. How many people remember that he was part of an Argentinian squad in the word cup in 2006 in Germany? On one game in particular he was involved in an attacking move that involved approximately 22 touches on the ball before Hernan Crespo put the ball in the back of the net. The move was a thing of beauty and it was hailed as the most impressive play of the whole tournament. The move was started in the six yard box of the Argentinian side and they just kept the ball to themselves till they found the back of the net. A few of our guys can play in that highly technical style but i don't see people like Carroll , Spearing , Hendo, pulling it off right away. I see a lot of silly turn overs. It is a skill that takes time to adopt.
England's team showed everyone that British players can't play Tiki-taka football. Henderson u having a laugh Jamie or what. We need more continental players for that style of football. Th only English player I would get is A Johnson of MC. Get rid of AC,CHA,SD,JH and JS. I would say Carrager as well but I'd keep him only for the two games against Stoke City. Oh maybe against W Ham as well now Fat Sam is their mngr.
ReplyDeletehas barca been found out playing this way? Madrid won the league, chelsea found a defensive couter attacking way to beat them. Dont get me wrong the football is breathtaking and on the stats front your players are up thier with the best, however as for the reason KK got sacked; results matter!
ReplyDeletelast year we did play some great football and created lots of chances and hit the woodwork numerous times but in the end we did not get the results and KK was sacked. the true fact of the matter at liverpool and the whole reason why Benitez, Hodgson and KK where sacked is because they did not get the results for 4th. they all had differing tactics but the results where the same. I can gaurantee that if rogers plays like barca and comes in 10th, the pro KD and benitez brigades will be in full swing and as we have seen wit hthe owners, they are far from patient. if you do not succeed you will be sacked! long term 3-5 yr plans are a thing of the 80's and 90's. Todays american owners want quick returns on thier investments no matter what crap they come out with, they have proven this how they have replaced nearly the whole sytem and changed tact from having no director of football to having none and now 3 specialists. I only hope that whatever rogers does he gets us up the table because if he doesnt, i am sorry what is the difference? why would we accept 10th from rogers and not KD , Rafa or Hodgson? oh yes i forgot, this manager is young and progressive and yada yada!! the only reason people are on this bandwagon of young manager is in the hope that another mourinho comes around! i do hope its rogers and i do hope he does well but do i think he will be given his 3-5 yrs no chance, hence his 3 yr deal, this type of deal is similar to di matteo; get results or you will be out with a small compensation package!
Fact still remains we played far more football in the opposition's half than Swansea (about 1000 more passes in total). Whatever way you cut it, our finishing let us down. Unfortunately for KK, he wasn't allowed the resources to put it right (notwithstanding the €35 million spent on Carroll) unlike Man City who could leave Dzeko on the bench or Man U who barely played Berbatov.
ReplyDeleteNotwithstanding that the premise of this piece is nonsense, why are 95% of articles on this site doom mongering ? What kind of supporter takes that approach ? Being critical and objective is fine but it's a perverse sport here.
ReplyDeleteKenny wasn't allowed the few quid needed to sign Jelavic from what I heard. Worth remembering that he tried to send Carroll on loan and bring Tevez in during the window as well. Imagine Tevez, Suarez and Jelavic upfront??? Can't blame KK for not signing the players he couldn't/wasn't allowed to sign.
ReplyDeleteNot with "Inferior players" no,
ReplyDeleteWith all due respect, what would former Crazy Gang member know.
ReplyDeleteVery hard to compare passing stats when we weren't setup for a passing game in the way Swansea etc are
I will give Roger's as much time. We need stability & Build up a winning squad & Style & Formula. 4-3-3 with two quality winger's & A new central midfielder to go with Gerrard & Lucas with Suarez as the main forward.
ReplyDeleteGreat to see someone highlight the real issues. Once again, Kenny gets blamed (he made mistakes, yes) but if the owners had sanctioned the acquisition of a striker, I think top 4 would have been a more realistic prospect.
ReplyDeleteSince BR became manager i have watched about 6 of the replayed Swans games not enough to give a fair assessment of their quality,but in all the
ReplyDeletegames i have seen it became quite boring,making umpteen passes in there own half then when they get to final third of the park they loose
possesion, not unlike Liverpool under KD`s admin.The midfield is were
Swansea were/are better Spearing,Adam,Shelvey,would not get in any
other premier league side.
cannot agree the quality of service from
ReplyDeletedefence when Carra played,and the service
from midfield (Stevie G.apart) was abysmal.
But the 5mill payoff, for abject failure was ok.(i suppose
ReplyDeleteyou will be one of the clowns that will be chanting `Dalglish`) if we don`t win every game......
Yeah, totally agree. There were missing parts in the whole Liverpool machinery. IF Swansea were ranked 6th in Europe for passing, then shouldn't they be in the top 4 in EPL. You can have players who can play the tiki taka well but you need to score and win games.Tiki taka is just a means to scoring and winning.
ReplyDeleteLiverpool definitely has got better individually skilled players than Swansea. They just need to be moulded into a cohesive playing unit by the manager. They were already playing the passing game to some extent.
"Accurate passing is a basic requirement for any professional footballer..." Try telling that to Jamie "Hoofer" Carragher.
ReplyDeleteOPTA stats might be true but they should not be looked at without keeping in mind the role of a player in team. A defender who mostly does side passes or back passes is always going to have better passing accuracy better than a winger or a playmaker.
ReplyDeleteAccuracy also depends on the tactics manager play. Short-passing tiki-taka always has higher accuracy than counter attacking games. But it does not mean tiki-taka creates more chances or has better chances of winning.
Liverpools passing stats has less to do with the players and more to do with the tactics deployed. if your approach is to play possession short passing game then you will have more passes then a team that does not play that style. Furthermore it is easier to make a 100 5 yard passes then 1 40 yard pass. It is Logic. Common sense. Earl is the one who is a few passes short. Furthermore given Nicols experience as a coach it is laughable that Earl would disagree with him.
ReplyDeleteI dun think BR had only had 1 style of tactic (tiki taka) in his sleeve....
ReplyDeleteArsenal didn't have good resources to provide cover for RVP last season, in case he got injured, yet they finished ahead of us, comfortably. He simply did the business last season, Carroll and Suarez simply didn't (the midfield were also cack in terms of goal threat,). I don't see the use in going on about Manure's or City's resources and how it makes us unfortunate as we weren't looking to compete with them last season but (looking to compete) with Spurs and Arsenal instead for a top 4 place, its not as if we are paupers compared to Arsenal and Spurs, with our high wage bill and the money we spent on the likes of Carroll, Downing, Suarez, etc. I don't see what good it does to go on about City and United's resources when we weren't realistically looking to compete for the title last season. We have and had resources in recent times (sometimes more than the likes of Arsenal and Newcastle) but we simply made a mess of it, which KK was partially responsible for.
ReplyDeleteRobbie Earle may have some black market tickets for the Euro 2012 final on Sunday, ITV reject. Wimbledon masters of the up and under, what does he know about playing football the correct way.
ReplyDeleteMore upset David Beckham after all he did for our Olympic bid is snubbed by the useless Stuart Pearce. Though Bellamy is a Liverpool player at the moment cant stand the bloke as a person, surely Becks deserves the call up ahead of the little rat or even Micah Richards.
Though can be (at least) partially blamed for the players that were actually signed under his reign.
ReplyDeleteI am not a racist .
ReplyDeleteI therefore agree 100% with Robbie Earle no matter what the non black Steve Nichol says ... about anything .
I'll go even further & say that in order not to be perceived to be in any way disagreeing with Robbie Earle that Brendan Rodgers & Swansea FC are Gods Gift to Football & that the players Rodgers foolishly left behind at Swansea are without doubt the greatest players to have ever set foot in England & as such are the greatest players in Europe & therefore the greatest players on the planet & if judged "Fairly" one can only conclude that they are the Greatest bunch of Players ever assembled to ever play professional football at any level of the game .
Oh , & may God bless Robbie Earle & his ticket touting ways , forever & a day , Amen .
It is racist behavior to question Robbie Earle & Steve Nichol should be jailed .
ReplyDeleteI guess we will find out when we are relegated & have to sell them to balance the books .
ReplyDeleteRobbie Earle is black , how dare you question him !?
ReplyDeleteShow some "Respect" .
Agreed! Too many bad decisions at boardroom level over the last 20+ years ...everything that was built under shankly/john smith has been squandered, death by a thousand cuts
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry, Brehon, but you've left me with no option but to ban you for a week. Personal insults against other posters are not acceptable (post now deleted).
ReplyDeleteJust read a report Sigurdsson has decided to join Tottenham. Well that's not a great start is it lol. I thought he was the banker of the summer. It'll be an interesting couple of weeks.
ReplyDeleteI am so sick to death of stats what ever happened to just watching players to see if they have the ability, the hunger, the fight, the skill , the speed and whether or not they can finish or set up plays, FFS do the stats tell us how many time Hendo passed the ball backwards and sideways, give me a break, if a manager can't spot talent based on the above mentioned and has to rely on stats than he is no manager.
ReplyDeleteI have read so many players opting to play elsewhere instead of us, this is shit we needed one of two things, 1) a large some of transfer money again or 2) a manager that can attract players, shit even that overrated Gylfi (spelling) is going to pick Spurs over us, what a joke.
You think Jay Spearing is good enough to play Tiki Taka? Your having a laugh mate. He'd sooner try and shoot, hit a hail mary pass or try a leg breaking tackle than play a simple pass to his teammate. Andy Carroll and Charlie Adam need to be sold. Carroll's value is probably as high as it will be but he's not going to play well under Rodgers. It's not a good fit.
ReplyDeleteMaxi Suarez Bellamy(New winger)
Aquilani Lucas Gerrard
Enrique Agger Skrtel Johnson
Reina
For me that is a good side and players that can all play Tiki Taka. Maxi should start every game, it was criminal the way he was underused by Dalglish.
Jay Spearing isn't good enough to play hop scotch never mind tiki taka
ReplyDelete