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Gerrard's future

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Rosco

Rosco

Worse than Brendan
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What is it going to be?

We know he signed a contact to keep him here until 2014, and there isnt any reason to believe he wont see it out. But what sort of a role do you see him playing for us in future?

Right now he doesnt look like he can give 100% for 90 mins so it'll be interesting to see him come back next season.
I've never been a huge fan of him in CM, so I would be pencilling him in as RM in a 4-4-2 at the moment or even sn impact sub if doesn't return fitter next year.
 
He didn't spend the whole season at right wing. In fact, a lot of his goals and assists came from games where he was playing in the middle. Furthermore, he tendency to drift infield often left our right flank unoccupied. It's perhaps a position he can take up from time to time but I wouldn't plan the season around him playing there. It is not a good idea in my view. We need to buy someone who can play RW properly particularly given that Maxi and Dirk are likely to leave.

I don't think we can build the team around him anymore either. But we have a lot of games coming up next season and there will be plenty of opportunities for everyone to play. In a way being crap has given us a little breathing space in which to search for a long-term solution and blood players such as Henderson and Shelvey.
 
get a central midfield that is good enough to ensure gerrard doesn't need to drop deep to collect the ball and gerrard will be fine.
we need to stop thinking of gerrard as a midfield, frankly I don't think that's where his strengths lie anymore.
 
Rosco said:
What is it going to be?

We know he signed a contact to keep him here until 2014, and there isnt any reason to believe he wont see it out. But what sort of a role do you see him playing for us in future?

Right now he doesnt look like he can give 100% for 90 mins so it'll be interesting to see him come back next season.
I've never been a huge fan of him in CM, so I would be pencilling him in as RM in a 4-4-2 at the moment or even sn impact sub if doesn't return fitter next year.
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I think the FA Cup final was evidence enough that Gerrard can't work as an all round midfielder anymore. He's still our most talented midfielder though, and I think he needs to be given a very specific role to shine.
I'm not against Rosco's idea.
If he's in the middle, I think it needs to be in a 4-2-3-1 formation, A) the way it was under Rafa where he played off the striker, or B) we bring in a top attacking midfielder (like Kagawa) and have Gerrard take a disciplined role alongside Lucas.

Four 4-4-2 (Andy and Luis upfront), he can't play in the middle so right hand side would work, as he's the best we have in that position.
 
We just don't know enough about what's happened to him physically over the last few months. He recovered from surgery saying he felt incredibly good, then had the infection and then came back looking painfully off the pace. Maybe he's picking up lots of niggling injuries because of the nature rehab. Maybe he's crocked. Maybe he's fine but just showing the signs of age and past injuries. Let's see how he comes through pre-season, we'll be better placed to judge him then.
 
gkmacca said:
We just don't know enough about what's happened to him physically over the last few months. He recovered from surgery saying he felt incredibly good, then had the infection and then came back looking painfully off the pace. Maybe he's picking up lots of niggling injuries because of the nature rehab. Maybe he's crocked. Maybe he's fine but just showing the signs of age and past injuries. Let's see how he comes through pre-season, we'll be better placed to judge him then.
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Yeah, true. He is only 31 after all (in modern day sports that's not old at all). Hopefully injuries haven't ruined him.
 
Im not sure he ever really worked as part of a midfield 2, his best performances have always come when he has had little or no defensive responsibility. His need to be involved in every step of attacking play was dangerous when he had the legs to get up and down the park all day now he clearly doesnt so he either plays behind the striker(s) or as the advanced player in a midfield 3, if we are not playing either of those systems then he shouldnt play. There is no point in building a team around him anymore so he either fits the system or he doesnt play
 
RedStar said:
Im not sure he ever really worked as part of a midfield 2, his best performances have always come when he has had little or no defensive responsibility. His need to be involved in every step of attacking play was dangerous when he had the legs to get up and down the park all day now he clearly doesnt so he either plays behind the striker(s) or as the advanced player in a midfield 3, if we are not playing either of those systems then he shouldnt play. There is no point in building a team around him anymore so he either fits the system or he doesnt play
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Exactly, thats why he might work well with Lucas, if not on the right or at the front of a three.
 
I really liked our formation against Norwich ( yes I know it was only Norwich ) where he swapped positions with Shelvey taking a breather every 10 minutes or so from supporting Suarez to cover in deeper midfield, this made them both very difficult to pick up and subsequently they had loads of space to run into. I think this will be Shelveys ultimate slot as well - I dont think he is suited to a dm role. By the way I thought Shelvey was excellent last night, always looking forward with intellligent passing even if they didnt all come off and he does not seem to panic in tight positions, in two or three years time he will be a real player.
 
I've been thinking that he'd be better as a Beckham style right midfielder for ages. His best delivery (in fact the best deliveries put into AC all season) where from when SG was on the right. I'd much prefer him here than anywhere, and always did think it was his best position.
 
RedStar said:
Im not sure he ever really worked as part of a midfield 2, his best performances have always come when he has had little or no defensive responsibility. His need to be involved in every step of attacking play was dangerous when he had the legs to get up and down the park all day now he clearly doesnt so he either plays behind the striker(s) or as the advanced player in a midfield 3, if we are not playing either of those systems then he shouldnt play. There is no point in building a team around him anymore so he either fits the system or he doesnt play
Click to expand...

I've with you on this. If his current fitness is now his actual level, then playing in support of our strikers is the only role I think he can contribute sufficiently to warrant a place in the team. It will allow him to use what bursts of (that old, amazing) dynamic energy he has left in an attacking way rather than chug about in a deep lying, slowing-fading-away midfield role.

I'd have him at the head of the midfield with a remit to go wide right often, leaving space for a late charging centre midfielder to get into the box whilst putting himself into a position to put in a proper cross to the regular first-teamer Andy Carroll.

Recently I've been wondering if the 'in front of the centrebacks' role he has been playing recently is a prelude to swapping roles with a returning Lucas, who has showed at times that he CAN be creative when getting forward.
 
the_khl said:
...is the best midfielder we've got by a long distance.
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Thats still true, but the margin is decreasing rapidly and its a case of constantly trying to shoe horn him into a system that really doesnt suit most of our players
 
Rosco said:
How do you define best?

He's the most talented but his performances this year don't live up to the billing you give him
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Best = Important, ambitious, talented, inspiring and more or less the heartbeat of most things good in our club.

Without him we'd be lost. Still.
 
Did ok last night

We're not a 1 man team khl

Least gerrard hasn't been that 1 for a few years
 
The problem is we spent £47 million on midfielders last summer and they have been largely dreadful, so we asking questions around the captain who should be the second name on the team sheet every week (fitness permitting).
 
Fabio said:
Did ok last night

We're not a 1 man team khl

Least gerrard hasn't been that 1 for a few years
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I know mate I just don't agree that he's one of the main areas of concerns for us at this stage.

The contrary, without him we'd be in a worse position come next Season than not.

And I need to see my dream midfield of Martinez, Gerrard and Eriksen, so leave him be.
 
I'm not sure what season you've been watching KHL.

Gerrard upsets the balance of the team, that was fine when he was producing goals left right and centre but he doesn't do that.

To me it makes no sense to build a team around him now that he's quite injury prone and about 18 months removed from a good run of form.
 
I think people are forgetting his hatrick against Everton recently, this website is truely the ultimate in "you are only as good as your last game"

He is fit, he should start
 
Jack D Rips said:
The days of building a team around Stevie G are long gone Im afraid.
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I agree, but that fact could prove a liberation for him - take away the feeling that he has to do everything, give him a clearly defined attacking role and tell him to go out and enjoy himself.
 
Fox said:
I think people are forgetting his hatrick against Everton recently, this website is truely the ultimate in "you are only as good as your last game"

He is fit, he should start
Click to expand...

only if we are playing a system in which he can be accomodated, you cannot build your team around him the returns just arent there anymore, this day had to come, he couldnt go on being the corner stone of the team into his mid 30s. This side needs to be rebuilt with a view to 2 or 3 years before we can hope to challenge for the title, rebuilding around a 31 year old with serious injury problems is just not viable regardless of past heroics.
 
Fox said:
I think people are forgetting his hatrick against Everton recently, this website is truely the ultimate in "you are only as good as your last game"

He is fit, he should start
Click to expand...

Absofuckinglutely. This place is nuts at times.

Scholes 37 (38 in Nov).
Gerrard 31 (32 in May).
 
to be honest if gerrard isn't played in a forward position I don't think he should play at all, I think we've been all over the fucking place when gerrard has started in the centre of midfield. you don't need stats when you have your own eyes.
 
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