England = Liverpool? Four Reds players started Monday's 0-0 draw with Slovakia, and the inconsistency that marred so much of last season came home to roost yet again, with Adam Lallana in particular showing once more that his end product just isn't good enough.
Analysing England's performance for ITV, West Ham boss Slaven Bilic singled out Lallana for specific criticism. He noted:
"All they [England] were doing was passing: one-two, one-two, one-two. Nobody tried to beat his own player. You need something extra in the last third. With Lallana^, it’s not enough just to take shots - he needs to score^".
Score for England? Chance would be a fine thing. Lallana - who cost Liverpool £26m - has ZERO goals and only two assists in 26 games for England, but for some reason, he continues to start every game.
As I've argued repeatedly, this is what happens when you rely on Lallana. Whether it's for Liverpool or England, he consistently fails to step-up when it matters, and he proved that yet again vs. Slovakia.
Lallana's apologists will predictably cite his pressing skills, but that is irrelevant without something positive to show for it. Lallana's job is to SCORE AND CREATE goals, and he continually fails to do that for both club and country (Four league goals last season speaks for itself).
Lallana's pressing made no difference against Slovakia, just as it made zero difference for Liverpool, who finished 6th and 8th in the last two Premier League seasons.
Still, like Klopp, Hodgson will continue to allow the allegedly 'brilliant' Lallana to prance around the field without fulfilling his primary role, and at some point, he will inevitably pay the price.
Lallana clearly needs to be replaced at Liverpool this summer, but if Klopp continues to rely on him as a starter, it'll be his funeral.
^ May 2016: Linked with a £20m summer move to Spurs.
^ Transcribed whilst watching live ITV coverage.
Analysing England's performance for ITV, West Ham boss Slaven Bilic singled out Lallana for specific criticism. He noted:
"All they [England] were doing was passing: one-two, one-two, one-two. Nobody tried to beat his own player. You need something extra in the last third. With Lallana^, it’s not enough just to take shots - he needs to score^".
Score for England? Chance would be a fine thing. Lallana - who cost Liverpool £26m - has ZERO goals and only two assists in 26 games for England, but for some reason, he continues to start every game.
As I've argued repeatedly, this is what happens when you rely on Lallana. Whether it's for Liverpool or England, he consistently fails to step-up when it matters, and he proved that yet again vs. Slovakia.
Lallana's apologists will predictably cite his pressing skills, but that is irrelevant without something positive to show for it. Lallana's job is to SCORE AND CREATE goals, and he continually fails to do that for both club and country (Four league goals last season speaks for itself).
Lallana's pressing made no difference against Slovakia, just as it made zero difference for Liverpool, who finished 6th and 8th in the last two Premier League seasons.
Still, like Klopp, Hodgson will continue to allow the allegedly 'brilliant' Lallana to prance around the field without fulfilling his primary role, and at some point, he will inevitably pay the price.
Lallana clearly needs to be replaced at Liverpool this summer, but if Klopp continues to rely on him as a starter, it'll be his funeral.
^ May 2016: Linked with a £20m summer move to Spurs.
^ Transcribed whilst watching live ITV coverage.
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