• You may have to login or register before you can post and view our exclusive members only forums.
    To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

Could the 3 of them work?..

Status
Not open for further replies.

vikas

Active
Member
Massive assumption of the other two staying fit when Benteke returns - an attempt to return to the swashbuckling attacking style with Ings' industry, coupled with him and Sturridge happy to run the channels and Benteke's ability to mix it up. Would we become too narrow or would it not matter with the added ability to score a goal..

Carnage or cabbage?

Mignolet
Clyne Skrtel Sakho Moreno
Henderson Milner
Coutinho
Ings Sturridge
Benteke

Mix and match with Lucas, Gomez, Firmino, Lovren etc getting a go depending on the game....
 
Neither Sturridge or Ings is a wide player, besides Sturridge is a better striker than Benteke so forcing him out wide to accommodate the big Belgian smacks of just shoehorning attacking players into the team

Which sounds exactly like something Rodgers would try to do.
 
Some managers would actually go for this and make it work. Mourinho is one I could imagine playing this kind of set-up, as he did something similar with Inter – Milito up front, Eto'o and Pandev on the wings with Sneijder pulling the strings in midfield. Very similar to what you suggested.

However, I don't think Rodgers should go this route, because the way to make it work is completely opposite to the way Rodgers' teams have been playing at their best – high pressing, dominating possession, relatively high defensive line. If you want to retain possession and play pass-and-move football, placing Sturridge, Benteke and Ings all up front is a pretty terrible idea because they will take chances and lose the ball and there will not be enough pressure to get it back immediately (as Sturridge and Benteke both don't press), so we'll be vulnerable to counterattacks. We'll be setting ourselves up for failure. Notice that in those games when Rodgers found himself in a desperate situation and subbed in a 3rd striker, this has to my recollection never, ever resulted in us getting the goal we were craving – but we sure conceded a few in those situations.

Like I was saying before, for now (when he comes back from the injury) Benteke should be dropped in favor of Ings and Sturridge and Ings should both play up front (no more 4-3-3 business). Some posters said it was the height of stupidity to bench your £32M striker, but the fact is, we scored 3 goals in a game for the first time this season without Benteke. And that's not a fluke – we also created a lot more quality scoring chances in the 3 games he wasn't playing. I don't hate Benteke, but I think the team style and cohesion is much more important than any player, no matter how much they cost.
 
Neither Sturridge or Ings is a wide player, besides Sturridge is a better striker than Benteke so forcing him out wide to accommodate the big Belgian smacks of just shoehorning attacking players into the team

Watch Rodgers do just that, then.
 
Neither Sturridge or Ings is a wide player, besides Sturridge is a better striker than Benteke so forcing him out wide to accommodate the big Belgian smacks of just shoehorning attacking players into the team

Hang on. This is in some ways similar to Suarez, Sturridge, Sterling (bit more added width there but ...). Ings' movement is quite similar to Suarez, up and down that left side and into and around the box, Sturridge was played on the right but with freedom of movement. I don't see why that formation would not be worth trying, Ings and Sturridge rotating around the Benteke pivot with all feeding off the flicks and passes they are all capable of and all having the freedom to float around the box and Coutinho / Milner / Henderson feeding all of them.
 
We scored when we went direct through the middle. Opponents knows we are useless on the wings, they let Clyne and to a bigger extend, Moreno roam free and we proved useless as they thought.

Not sure how Benteke is going to fit in. It is pointless asking someone we paid 30mios because he is big and strong in the air to start making runs behind the defenders and play along the line.
 
.......... Not sure how Benteke is going to fit in. It is pointless asking someone we paid 30mios because he is big and strong in the air to start making runs behind the defenders and play along the line.

Even though that's exactly what he does from time to time ? He's not the fastest but he's not slow and once he gets ahead of a defender then there's pretty much no way back for them.
 
Hang on. This is in some ways similar to Suarez, Sturridge, Sterling (bit more added width there but ...). Ings' movement is quite similar to Suarez, up and down that left side and into and around the box, Sturridge was played on the right but with freedom of movement. I don't see why that formation would not be worth trying, Ings and Sturridge rotating around the Benteke pivot with all feeding off the flicks and passes they are all capable of and all having the freedom to float around the box and Coutinho / Milner / Henderson feeding all of them.


That's clutching at straws.
 
Sturridge won't play wide. When he came here Rodgers promised to play him central, even when Suarez was here, he was the one who roamed wide and deep off Sturridge in the central role. I think essentially it should be Sturridge and whoever is playing well. At the minute it's Ings, but Benteke gives us a different option too. When they play as a two, there's alot of potential in both partnerships, Benteke/Sturridge or Ings/Sturridge.

You can't play the three because the pace is through the centre with Sturridge, Ings is ok wide but better in a two. At least we've now got three strikers who look a threat, the key is keeping them fit.
 
And we can play Firmino/Coutinho behind the front two.

In certain games at home I wouldnt be against both in the team either with Coutinho dropping down in midfield.
 
So.... we paid £32m for Benteke to be "plan B" on the bench.

I mean... that's not surprising... Quite a few saw it coming.

And where does the other expensive recruit - Firmino - fit into this.

It's great we can spend so much on players to enhance our squad and attacking options - given that we're banging in goals and challenging on multiple fronts.
 
The problem is, Ings looks like a brilliant footballer with great work ethic.

Its clear he needs to be played centrally. None of our three strikers can play across the pitch like suarez or raheem could.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top Bottom