Too slow - only scores when faster people are beside him.
Pace - the search for the next Salah - Mane
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Too slow - only scores when faster people are beside him.
He's the tame Original flavour.
But it's not the most incorrect statement?
We look much more of a force when mane and Salah play as firmino is a wonderful springboard.
Keita will provide pace from midfield. It isn't JUST pace we're missing, as much as the ability to carry the ball past people, to penetrate. So I get the missing Coutinho thing, he could do that. Naby will do that. Fekir will do it too.
Yep, he's ace. He will be amongst the next big things with mbappe et al
So much this.
We were crying out for Oxo on Saturday
Keita will do that with added beast mode
We were in the CL final once Salah went off.
Saw Solo. Enjoyable
He might well be if they get griezmann.
Agreed, I would expect people understand pace alone isn't enough.
But likewise skill and game intelligence isn't either as we looked so limited after Salah went off. Firmino was rubbish.
You need both hence why I said the next Salah or Mane in the title as they have both, not Firmino (not quick enough) or Moreno (no fucking brain.
So, by that logic, if Klopp has brought on Moreno, who’s been clocked as faster than Salah, it would have been fine?
The point I’m making is that it wasn’t Lallana’s lack of speed that caused the problems- it was the fact that, pace or no pace, he’s not good at playing in a forward wide attacking position - he unbalanced the entire attacking system.
In terms of pace - the only players clocked at faster than Firmino this season are Salah, Mane, Gomez & Moreno.
Actually - the fastest player at the club is Origi.
Nah it was more a discussion around needing more options in an attacking sense with pace and ability.
We were a 1 man band in the final without Salah
Which is why he should have kept one striker on the books. Origi was not shit in Klopps first season ... he was affected by that injury against Everton and needed games to get back into form. Like many have said .. he should have bought on Solanke and maintained an attacking front 3 and not resort to putting on a cripple.
It's a combination of intelligent movent and pace from the flanks that opens space up for firmino to exploit. Bobby may be quick, but as he doesn't play on the shoulder of the last defender it's redundant on how we set up.
Mane created some space, but he started being doubled up on so bobby was getting nothing. Lallana might have the intelligent movement, but positionally he was unsure and his lack of real pace meant the defence could be set up.
Bobby became a victim of the system as the match progressed as it because easier and easier to squeeze him out as we got stretched more and more.
He didn't have a good game because of it. Kinda happened all season. If we've not got the movement and pace on both sides then bobby has struggled. It's rare all 3 haven't played, and when we rotated bobby wasn't as good as he could have been.
we were in it after too ... if it wasn't for 3 mistakes (two which were punished), we played fine.
Most likely we would have moved Oxlade there if he wasnt injured, that would have seen us with pace on both sides for the rest of the final.
But its quite obvious that we need an additional player with similar qualities to Mane and Salah.
Bobby shouldnt be mentioned in this discussion.
Regarding pace throughout the team. We’ve added Virgil, and this summer Keita and Fabinho.
Not many teams can match us on that front in all honesty.
But its quite obvious that we need an additional player with similar qualities to Mane and Salah.
Bobby shouldnt be mentioned in this discussion.
Regarding pace throughout the team. We’ve added Virgil, and this summer Keita and Fabinho.
Not many teams can match us on that front in all honesty.
I hear you - and agree with a great deal.
One other perspective is that the change that happened after the Salah was in how effectively we pressed their defence is possession.
Their possession stats jumped up significantly- by 20% odd I believe.
Our front 3 has been very good at closing down space and passing options, particularly around their CB’s - which meant RM weren’t as fluid getting the ball to their midfield - who in turn could get hold of the ball long enough to pick us apart.
Now, being quick in the press (which is what gegenpressing is all about) and second guessing where passes are going is not the same as being a quick or fast player.
Pace is important when/if you get the ball.
Whatever happened- the quick press slowed immediately and stopped working or being as effective.
The theory is that players press together in a group - our group of forwards stopped being as successful at pressing after Salah went off - so the press fell apart.
I’d blame it on Lallana replacing Salah - but because he wasn’t as good at pressing as Salah - whether it’s because he wasn’t match fit or that that the group just weren’t used to working together as effectively, I don’t know.
I do know that it wasn’t solely to do with Lallana and Firmino being slow though.
The opposition is scared of pushing up when they know attackers can get in behind. Once Salah went off, our heads dropped and Real allowed themselves to relax a lot more, push up and spread out knowing that we only had one out ball - Mane.
Lallana was way off the pace and Firmino was left chasing shadows because he was too deep.
Wow, that's a bit of a harsh reaction, CBG! Has someone nicked you're favourite plushy? You seem tense.
Absolutely - and our press collectively crumbled.
I’m not arguing that Lallana wasn’t the problem - his lack of match fitness, being played out of position, the fact that the Fab 3 play so well together, collective dropping of heads, etc
It wouldn’t have mattered if he had Usain Bolt level pace.
Quite the opposite I’m afraid - it was my birthday and I was relaxing with a rather delightful bottle of 2017 Luke Lambert Syrah.
Very tasty it was too.
It didn't stop Mane scoring, hitting the post and beng our best player.
But when we needed Firmino on step up, in the biggest game of his career, he ambled about slowly and did fuck all. Not all his fault, the entire team and support were dismayed when Salah's pace and goal threat was replaced by the pedestrian Lallana, but he needs pace around him to perform.
Imagine it like cos-play, when you get your XXXXXL Jedi outfit on to watch Star Wars, you need other people to join in and be on your wavelength, to play at your level.
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