Cardiff Match Thread

[Modo]

Read a few posts on Cardiff fans forum and got the feeling that they're not expecting anything at Anfield.
Not surprising, but it can sometimes be difficult playing a team with nothing to lose.

I believe they intend to park the bus and hope to knick a goal on the counter. I haven't seen much from Cardiff this season but I'm not impressed by what I've seen. Their defence seems to be a lot better than their attack and they seem to have trouble scoring goals.

All the talk after the game has been about the upcoming games against City and Chelsea, I really hope we don't lose focus in this game.

Like always, an early goal is a bonus and would force Cardiff to push forward.

No changes in the line up for me.

 

[Spaghetti Legs]

Can't see anything else but another comfortable win with Suarez terrorising them and bagging 2 or 3 more.

 

[rurikbird]

I would make some changes for this game:

1. Rest Johnson (who is going through a dip in form anyway) in favor of Kelly
2. Start Agger and Toure at CB.
3. If he is training well, consider giving a start to Aspas at the expense of either Coutinho or Sterling. He needs a chance to show if he deserves to stay beyond January.

Something like this:

-----------Suarez------------
Aspas--------------Sterling
---------Hendo--Allen------
--------------Lucas-----------
Boner-man-------------Kelly
--------Agger--Toure-------
------------Mignolet----------

 

[Modo]

I would make some changes for this game:

1. Rest Johnson (who is going through a dip in form anyway) in favor of Kelly
2. Start Agger and Toure at CB.
3. If he is training well, consider giving a start to Aspas at the expense of either Coutinho or Sterling. He needs a chance to show if he deserves to stay beyond January.

They've got 6 days between the Cardiff game and the City game. I wouldn't change a thing.

 

[Spaghetti Legs]

Rodgers would be mad to change anything, we have a settled team now who are firing.

Not meaning to be rude but screw Aspas, if hes to ever get a chance again it should be when were 3/4 nil up with 20 mins to play or maybe the FA Cup game.

 

[rurikbird]

I understand what you are saying, but I also think the strength of this team is in "the group," as Rodgers likes to say. To take one example, if Rodgers didn't start finding playing time for Allen before Gerrard's injury, we would have been screwed by the captain's absence much more. Instead, Allen went into the Spurs game with confidence and a sense that he has a place in this team. I think it's important to keep the players motivated and on their toes, whether they are starting or on the bench.

I think Kelly is due a start, especially since Johnson has been our worst player in the last couple of games. And now that Sakho and Skrtel proved they can play well together, Agger and Toure deserve a chance too. I wouldn't change the midfield, but frankly we should be OK against Cardiff with any defensive partnership. In fact, you can argue that a pair of calm, experienced CBs is a safer bet in this type of game, as Sakho and Skrtel can be a bit wild at times.

For Aspas, I don't know (that's why I wrote "consider"). I don't have any idea how he looks in training. Considering that he is not earning any minutes as a substitute, maybe not too good. But he surely won't be used against City and Chelsea away, so Cardiff is the only chance before January to find out if Aspas can still be useful for us.

 

[rurikbird]

They've got 6 days between the Cardiff game and the City game. I wouldn't change a thing.

We play Cardiff on Saturday and City on Thursday. The way I count it's 5 days apart.

Saturday – Cardiff home
Thursday – City away
Sunday – Chelsea away
Wednesday – Hull home

Mad schedule. And the home games are no less important than the away fixtures against the "big boys."

 

[Modo]

We play Cardiff on Saturday and City on Thursday. The way I count it's 5 days apart.

Saturday – Cardiff home
Thursday – City away
Sunday – Chelsea away
Wednesday – Hull home

Mad schedule. And the home games are no less important than the away fixtures against the "big boys."

OK, guess it's 5. Still wouldn't rotate

 

[Fallon]

I would make some changes for this game:

1. Rest Johnson (who is going through a dip in form anyway) in favor of Kelly
2. Start Agger and Toure at CB.
3. If he is training well, consider giving a start to Aspas at the expense of either Coutinho or Sterling. He needs a chance to show if he deserves to stay beyond January.

Something like this:

-----------Suarez------------
Aspas--------------Sterling
---------Hendo--Allen------
--------------Lucas-----------
Boner-man-------------Kelly
--------Agger--Toure-------
------------Mignolet----------

You don't touch a team who just dominated spurs like ours did, have different options on the bench and rotate early if we go a few up, but otherwise you stick with what works. It would be madness to drop Coutinho, Skrtel and Sakho.

 

[Spaghetti Legs]

To be fair dropping Johnson for Kelly for Cardiff isn't a bad idea, more to give Johnson a kick up the arse than anything else, it really shouldn't make to much difference to the peformance of the team.

Skrtel and Sakho really need to play every game from now on, no need to keep messing around with the centre backs, we need that settled centre back partnership and resting Coutinho is a dangerous game to play, he hasn't much football in his legs this season anyway with his injury, as Fallon says take them off after they have done the job and then give the fringe players a chance to impress like whats been happening with Alberto.

 

[Spaghetti Legs]

When you think about it its only Henderson and Lucas that have played in the majority of our games this season, Suarez and Skrtel are next once they got back in, most have had injuries or been on the bench ay some point, we should be quite fresh for these run of games.

 

[keniget]

I'm surprised that you would pretty much replace the backline. Johnson was poor in parts so not averse to giving him some bench time to contemplate things but the centre-back partnership too? I'm not sure what we gain by that.

In truth, I'm a little concerned about this game. It feels like everyone already has us top of the league come Saturday afternoon and the past has taught me to be fearful of situations like these. We always get all giddy after a good performance and then slip up against some shit team.

If the players turn up with the same attitude (see: Hull) then it won't work out too well for us. I'm not expecting them to have the same hunger and work-rate because that only tends to surface in the so-called big games but I do hopefully they turn up willing to work and can keep up the sharpness they showed against Spurs.

 

[StevieM]

I would make some changes for this game:

1. Rest Johnson (who is going through a dip in form anyway) in favor of Kelly
2. Start Agger and Toure at CB.
3. If he is training well, consider giving a start to Aspas at the expense of either Coutinho or Sterling. He needs a chance to show if he deserves to stay beyond January.

Something like this:

-----------Suarez------------
Aspas--------------Sterling
---------Hendo--Allen------
--------------Lucas-----------
Boner-man-------------Kelly
--------Agger--Toure-------
------------Mignolet----------

That is ridiculous.

Replace 3 of the back four & drop a key creative midfielder - just as everyone's getting some form.

Keep the same team that started against Spurs - put the game to bed early and sub off key players early in the second half is the only way to go.

 

[Mystic]

Yeh, we need to be bought back down to earth and ready for this match, its a potential banana skin. Gerrard seemed to suggest that the first thing Rodgers would do is tell the players to forget about Tottenham and start focusing on Cardiff, hopefully he's done that, hopefully that carrot of going top of the league for a while will drive everyone to win!

 

[doctor_mac]

They've got 6 days between the Cardiff game and the City game. I wouldn't change a thing.

100% this. This is precisely the kind of game we mess up through lack of intensity.

 

[rurikbird]

"Lack of intensity" is more likely to happen when you play the same players week after week, rather then keeping them on their toes by introducing a sense of genuine competition. I don't think Kelly, who needs to prove that he belongs in the team, would play with any less "intensity" than Johnson or that Agger and Toure would represent any kind of noticeable drop in quality from Skrtel-Sakho. After all it's the partnership that brought us 3 clean sheets at the start of the season.

I think we absolutely will need to rotate during the stretch of 4 games in 11 days, it's just inevitable. If players are not rested, they are more likely to get injured. I actually worry about the Hull game more than the Cardiff game, I think we are riding on a high wave now and can win even with less than 100% strongest team. But by January 1st the team might be too exhausted physically and psychologically and that's where a drop in intensity is much more likely.

 

[doctor_mac]

"Lack of intensity" is more likely to happen when you play the same players week after week, rather then keeping them on their toes by introducing a sense of genuine competition. I don't think Kelly, who needs to prove that he belongs in the team, would play with less "intensity" than Johnson or that Agger and Toure would represent a drop in quality from Skrtel-Sakho.

I think we absolutely will need to rotate during the stretch of 4 games in 11 days, it's just inevitable. If players are not rested, they are more likely to get injured. I actually worry about the Hull game more than the Cardiff game, I think we are riding on a high wave now and can win even with less than 100% strongest team. But by January first the team might be too exhausted and that's where a drop in intensity is much more likely.

Rurik, our players have played less games than most of our big rivals with no Europe, and going out of the Carling cup almost straight away. Johnson for Kelly is a possible. I certainly wouldn't swap any of the midfield.

 

[Piedro]

We've just kept a clean sheet for the first time in like 7000 years and people want to change the back 4. Fuck me. Leave as it is, you don't need to chop and change the back line.

 

[StevieM]

I really don't get this "play Kelly" nonsense - he's had half a dozen decent games in5 odd years.

Why don't we drop Flannagan and play Cissoko - you know - to keep them both on their toes.

Maybe we should drop Suarez - with no competition for his place we don't want him getting complacent.

Seriously - how did we go last season against shit teams in the FA Cup when we thought we could fill the team with fringe players.

This Cardiff game is massive - a win could see us top on Christmas Day - that's a massive psychological boost.

Sterling, Sakho, Allen, etc are just beginning to gel and come in to some form - they need to
Play games together for us to progress.

Why would you change it and underestimate you opponent at the same time.

 

[Mors]

Same team again please. If we're tearing them a new one, then put some kids on at half time. I don't like this put out a weaker starting lineup shit, then expect people to save us off the bench. Batter them, then bring on the kids when we're comfortable. There are no easy games in the premier league, we've come unstuck with that shit before.

 

[hmmmmm1]

"Lack of intensity" is more likely to happen when you play the same players week after week, rather then keeping them on their toes by introducing a sense of genuine competition. I don't think Kelly, who needs to prove that he belongs in the team, would play with any less "intensity" than Johnson or that Agger and Toure would represent any kind of noticeable drop in quality from Skrtel-Sakho. After all it's the partnership that brought us 3 clean sheets at the start of the season.

I think we absolutely will need to rotate during the stretch of 4 games in 11 days, it's just inevitable. If players are not rested, they are more likely to get injured. I actually worry about the Hull game more than the Cardiff game, I think we are riding on a high wave now and can win even with less than 100% strongest team. But by January 1st the team might be too exhausted physically and psychologically and that's where a drop in intensity is much more likely.

Are you Rafa in disguise?

We just hammered one of rivals in their own back yard ,should keep the same team

 

[DHSC]

Same team, barring injuries. However, would like to see Rodgers put some early subs in if we are leading comfortably after 60-70 mins. Heck if we're leading 6-0 at half time I would take Suarez out.

 

[rurikbird]

Seems like I'm in the minority of one 🙂

 

[Brizzle]

One of our greatest problems this season has been inconsistency in defence. We need to stick with a back 4 for a long series of games to get them in tune with each other.

The schedule does look a bit hectic, but given we haven't been playing mid week games this season in Europe or the League Cup, 2 weeks of 2 games a week shouldn't be an issue. Keep the same line up against Cardiff to take the pressure off the City game. If we ring in the changes and then lose/draw, that puts an immense amount of pressure on the City game.

I would want to see exactly the same line up for Cardiff and then depending how that goes, we can address the team required for City.

 

[Rosco]

I would make a change or two as well.

I'd keep Sakho in there because I just think he's the guy we need to build around at the back. I've got no issues with giving Agger a game, but I'm not really bothered who plays alongside Sakho. It's much of a muchness.

Johnson has been out of sorts for a while so if Kelly is ready I'd give him a game.

Other than that I'm not really inclined to make any other changes to the staring lineup but I'd be more willing to give Aspas and Alberto a run out in the last 30 if things are going well

 

[Brizzle]

I think the most likely thing we'll see is early subs if we get a lead of 2 or 3, and that would most likely be Alberto for Coutinho and Moses for Sterling.

 

[RolandG]

Don't change a winning team

 

[Fabio]

Only 1 change maximum, and that's give johnno a rest because he's been a bit shit for a bit. See how Kelly gets on.

 

[Gerry_A_Trick]

I'd make a change or two as well, given who we have coming up afterwards. Like others, the only ones I can think of changing are(or because of injury the only ones we can) Skrtel and Johnson. I would like to see Kelly get some game time, but no harm in Agger or Toure coming back in.

 

[My_Blood_Bleeds_Red]

This game has Hull written all over it.

*bites nail*