Let's take a break from the title challenge and have a think about the future with (hopefully - still cautious!) a season of CL ahead of us. There are a few puzzles to solve in the squad at the moment and it'll be quite interesting to see which way we go.
Fullbacks
Since the midfield sorted their shit out and the attack have been bailing out the defence in general earlier in the season, the fullback positions have emerged as the biggest problem area for most. We're short in numbers and depending on your point of view, quality.
At RB, we've got Johnson, coming to the end of his contract, on the back of what has been a difficult season overall. Kelly looks finished at Liverpool after his injuries.
At LB, Enrique (who I've pretty much forgotten about) has been out for pretty much the season with something or another. How does that impact his ability to perform next season?
Then there is Flannagan, a RB by trade playing at LB, who has enjoyed a fairly meteoric rise in the team in the last few months.
It definitely feels like an area that we can improve upon. Which side to we buy for though? Left? Right? Both? Do we keep the faith with Flannagan and hope that he can take his game up a few notches again thus saving us some money?
Central Defence
The sales everyone was expecting didn't happen last summer. Time for Rodgers to make that right?
We've chopped and changed most of the season at the back trying to find the right formula (though of course it was out of necessity at times too) and it seems reflecting back on the discussions on here that many feel as though we need to buy. Where does that leave Skrtel who has been a mainstay in the side this season and Sakho who cost us 17M last summer?
Personally, I'd be very reluctant to spend any more money in this area unless there is a deal to be had that simply can't be ignored.
Central Midfield
I thought this was our biggest problem area last season and couldn't believe it wasn't addressed in the summer. The midfield was all over the place at the beginning of the season but credit to Rodgers, he seems to have got them playing like a proper unit. The only question is whether they're riding a high at the moment or whether we can expect this level to be maintained going forward.
I suppose we don't want to go into next season expecting Gerrard to play two games a week and given that we often play three in the middle, we probably need another body to cover in midfield in addition to Lucas (presuming he's staying). Do we want that extra player to be more attack or defense minded?
Speaking of attack minded, there is a bit of an issue with our collection of young attacking midfielders. Coutinho sits comfortably at the top of the pile and is getting the games he needs to continue to improve. Behind him though there is the talented Suso who is having an up and down time at Almeria, Alberto who, along with our 7M, has vanished off the face of the earth, and Teixeira. Given that we're not going to be playing no hopers in the Europa League next season (again - hopefully!), do we have the games to give these guys? What do we do with them? It feels like it would be a great shame to throw away the investment we've already made because there is definitely talent in that group.
Forwards
Okay, so obviously everything up until now just fades away into the background if Suarez ends up going. At the moment there don't seem to be any signs of that happening, but it could all change after a couple stories in Marca. For now, I'm just going to assume that he's staying.
So Rodgers has now twice tried to add another wide forward to the side - last summer and then again in January. It seems likely that he will try again and we probably do need at least one more option. The rise and rise of Sterling is something we can't ignore and it'd be a shame to see a player come in and completely block his path. That said, we can ill afford any more Borinis and Aspas', and there will probably be enough games to go round.
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So, there are some of the questions as I see them. I don't think we're going to get some huge sum of money to invest in the summer and as usual, the kitty will be need to be bolstered by sales.
How would you go about building a balanced squad that is capable of coping with all competitions whilst maintaining the investment we have in youth?
Fullbacks
Since the midfield sorted their shit out and the attack have been bailing out the defence in general earlier in the season, the fullback positions have emerged as the biggest problem area for most. We're short in numbers and depending on your point of view, quality.
At RB, we've got Johnson, coming to the end of his contract, on the back of what has been a difficult season overall. Kelly looks finished at Liverpool after his injuries.
At LB, Enrique (who I've pretty much forgotten about) has been out for pretty much the season with something or another. How does that impact his ability to perform next season?
Then there is Flannagan, a RB by trade playing at LB, who has enjoyed a fairly meteoric rise in the team in the last few months.
It definitely feels like an area that we can improve upon. Which side to we buy for though? Left? Right? Both? Do we keep the faith with Flannagan and hope that he can take his game up a few notches again thus saving us some money?
Central Defence
The sales everyone was expecting didn't happen last summer. Time for Rodgers to make that right?
We've chopped and changed most of the season at the back trying to find the right formula (though of course it was out of necessity at times too) and it seems reflecting back on the discussions on here that many feel as though we need to buy. Where does that leave Skrtel who has been a mainstay in the side this season and Sakho who cost us 17M last summer?
Personally, I'd be very reluctant to spend any more money in this area unless there is a deal to be had that simply can't be ignored.
Central Midfield
I thought this was our biggest problem area last season and couldn't believe it wasn't addressed in the summer. The midfield was all over the place at the beginning of the season but credit to Rodgers, he seems to have got them playing like a proper unit. The only question is whether they're riding a high at the moment or whether we can expect this level to be maintained going forward.
I suppose we don't want to go into next season expecting Gerrard to play two games a week and given that we often play three in the middle, we probably need another body to cover in midfield in addition to Lucas (presuming he's staying). Do we want that extra player to be more attack or defense minded?
Speaking of attack minded, there is a bit of an issue with our collection of young attacking midfielders. Coutinho sits comfortably at the top of the pile and is getting the games he needs to continue to improve. Behind him though there is the talented Suso who is having an up and down time at Almeria, Alberto who, along with our 7M, has vanished off the face of the earth, and Teixeira. Given that we're not going to be playing no hopers in the Europa League next season (again - hopefully!), do we have the games to give these guys? What do we do with them? It feels like it would be a great shame to throw away the investment we've already made because there is definitely talent in that group.
Forwards
Okay, so obviously everything up until now just fades away into the background if Suarez ends up going. At the moment there don't seem to be any signs of that happening, but it could all change after a couple stories in Marca. For now, I'm just going to assume that he's staying.
So Rodgers has now twice tried to add another wide forward to the side - last summer and then again in January. It seems likely that he will try again and we probably do need at least one more option. The rise and rise of Sterling is something we can't ignore and it'd be a shame to see a player come in and completely block his path. That said, we can ill afford any more Borinis and Aspas', and there will probably be enough games to go round.
---
So, there are some of the questions as I see them. I don't think we're going to get some huge sum of money to invest in the summer and as usual, the kitty will be need to be bolstered by sales.
How would you go about building a balanced squad that is capable of coping with all competitions whilst maintaining the investment we have in youth?
