Klopp is a very good manager. But he’s not a miracle worker. For the first time since Benitez we have a manager with a very clear idea of how he wants us to play, and knows how to get us there. Problem is, it takes more time than people would think. In Benitez’s first season in charge we were pretty horrendous in the league. I distinctly remember a game in March 2007 where we beat Arsenal 4-1. There were a murmurings after that came that finally we were seeing the real Benitez team – the equivalent of his so called “crushing machine” of Valencia. Rafa had finally got his spine right. Reina, Carragher, and his ideal double pivot of Masherano and Alonso. We were brutal in that game. Arsenal never had a sniff. But this was nearly 3 years after he first took charge.
So finally we have a manager that we believe in (well I certainly do). But he’s inherited a team 2 months into a season with no pre-season to get any ideas across. On top of that throw an injury crisis with key individuals and a terrible run of difficult games thick and fast. The most alarming thing is how many areas of the squad are major concerns:
Goalkeeper: major concerns over presence and command in area.
Centre backs: Sakho injury prone, and Skrtel is Skrtel.
Left back: Moreno is looking more confident, but can be a liability defensively
Central midfield: Major issues. Lucas and Can are squad players. We lack a dynamic defensive midfielder and we also lack someone who can control a game and dictate the pace. Compare the current situation to a double pivot of Mascherano and Alonso. Or Bender and Gundogan for that matter.
Wingers: A key element of the Klopp system. But we only have one, and he’s young and only just breaking through.
Striker: Sturridge can’t be relied on at all. Ings is out for the season, Origi has looked pretty ordinary. Which leaves Benteke as our only decent option.
So I think the sooner people realise that this really is a write off year, the better. We’ll take the good results when they come, and maybe a cup run. But I’m fully in support of Klopp treating the Europa seriously – the more games the players play, the quicker they’ll develop into the system and the more fluid we’ll become.
It may be two or three years before we’re a proper force to be reckoned with again.
So finally we have a manager that we believe in (well I certainly do). But he’s inherited a team 2 months into a season with no pre-season to get any ideas across. On top of that throw an injury crisis with key individuals and a terrible run of difficult games thick and fast. The most alarming thing is how many areas of the squad are major concerns:
Goalkeeper: major concerns over presence and command in area.
Centre backs: Sakho injury prone, and Skrtel is Skrtel.
Left back: Moreno is looking more confident, but can be a liability defensively
Central midfield: Major issues. Lucas and Can are squad players. We lack a dynamic defensive midfielder and we also lack someone who can control a game and dictate the pace. Compare the current situation to a double pivot of Mascherano and Alonso. Or Bender and Gundogan for that matter.
Wingers: A key element of the Klopp system. But we only have one, and he’s young and only just breaking through.
Striker: Sturridge can’t be relied on at all. Ings is out for the season, Origi has looked pretty ordinary. Which leaves Benteke as our only decent option.
So I think the sooner people realise that this really is a write off year, the better. We’ll take the good results when they come, and maybe a cup run. But I’m fully in support of Klopp treating the Europa seriously – the more games the players play, the quicker they’ll develop into the system and the more fluid we’ll become.
It may be two or three years before we’re a proper force to be reckoned with again.
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