Post Match Thoughts: Swansea - Liverpool

[ILD]

Sakho committed himself quite a few times and it worried me a bit. He dived in a few times and went wandering once or twice. He looks like he has bags of talent so i'll chalk this one down to finding his feet. A sharp Sakho could be a beast for us but Skrtel deserves to keep him place. He was my MOTM. Covered gaps, dealt with crosses and had an amazing block on Bony.

Really enjoyed Henderson's running power and we needed his energy as we tired on the hour mark. Moses was very good until he faded. He was jaded towards the end but showed pace, power and an eye for goal. Brilliant debut.

Williams is a cunt. He had a go at Gerrard for Stevie having the audacity of tackling him. A go at Henderson for another incident and kicked poor little Coutinho. 😉

A mixed night for Shelvey. I've always liked Jonjo. Hope he has a good season with them.

 

[gkmacca]

I suspect Swansea won't play a game with that intensity again when they have a game on Thursday to follow.

 

[Y1]

Good to come away with a point. Looks like we will grind out points for the season. I take that anytime than losing beautifully.

 

[Farkmaster]

I suspect Swansea won't play a game with that intensity again when they have a game on Thursday to follow.

They have an awful schedule, and I'm not sure why they had to play on Monday, considering the fixture congestion it produced. If they were a bigger team, we'd be hearing about it.

 

[Khalido]

A win against Southampton and this result will probably be looked upon in a better light than most of us are viewing it right now. However, I can't help but worry our failure to strengthen the midfield in the summer is coming back to haunt us.

When you consider our possession stats in the 2nd Half were in the low 30's, for a team whose primary philosophy is to keep the ball, that's a shocking stat and it needs to be addressed. I think it was only partially due to the loss of Coutinho, as he offers clever movement as part of a midfield triangle ahead of a mainly static Lucas/Gerrard and a link to our fwds, but it was impossible to ignore the lacklustre display by our captain.

If we accept, as it now seems that he doesn't have the legs to get into the box and offer a goal threat, and he has Lucas playing the sitting role, he needs to be demanding the ball and dictating the play, giving it , getting it back, probing and directing our midfield. Everything should go through him in that role as we know thats not Lucas's game. Also, his movement when he didn't have the ball, was non-existant at times. From what I could see, he seemed to be happy to or under instruction to play as a 2nd Lucas, a purely defensive role, in just passing to Coutinho to create our play.

Also, if he is going to play so deep, he needs to be able to track the oppositions midfield runners, something he neglected to do when Shelvey made that run fwd for Michu's equaliser. Gerrard watched Shelvey run past him then only reacted to point to Skrtel to try and close him down. Concentration, fatigue, whatever the reason, it was far to easy for Shelvey to get into that position and it will be something other sides will look to exploit.

The best midfiled balance we've had in recent years was Alonso/Mascherano in what is now the Gerrard/Lucas roles, with vintage Gerrard operating in the role Coutinho now occupies. Gerrard is trying to play the Alonso role, but he's not that type of player and it really showed tonight. He can still whip in a great ball, whether it be from a set piece or open play, but as far as keeping the ball and maintaining some control over the midfield, he wasn't up to it tonight.

Throw in the way he turned his back on the Shelvey shot that lead to the first goal and it really was a night to forget for Stevie. I'm not writing him off, far from it, but at his age I think he needs to be used more sparingly where he can have a similar impact to what Gary McAllister gave us at a similar age. The fact we are limited in midfield options makes that unlikely at this moment though I expect and hope Rodgers will address this in the January window.

Having said all that, we're still top of the league!

 

[Ryan]

- I know everyone's giving it the old I'd have taken 10 points/draw's a good result/still top of the league chat, but we were 2-1 up against a fairly uninspiring Swanseas side with 25 mins to go and let it slip. That's disappointing.

- Our right side was poor. Certainly in contrast to our left anyway. wisdom isn't great on the ball, and Henderson's not really suited to those in-tight oneotuch games. He looked ok, but we got no length or width out of our right side.

- Moses was excellent. Looks a super player. Good feet, knows when to release it, knows when to run with it, he'll get doiuble figures in goals this season which for a loan player is fantastic business.

- Lucas was excellent. Again. but I'm gonna take issue with one thing' there was no need to rile Shelvey up like he did at that stage of the game. Shelvey had his head buried up his own arse at that stage and probably would have gifted us a 3rd the way he was going. that little argy-bargy with Lucas gave him the bit of bite his game needed and he created the equaliser straight after it. Lucas should have known better.

- And that's why there's no such thing as a first 11. Toure, Agger, Johnson, Suarez, Coutinho, all injured or unavailable.

- Swansea's game plan was to let us have it in our own half and then press when we went over the halfway line. Countering that means you've got to have quick movement and players with great touch. The second Coutinho went off we looked one-paced and predictable. He's probably a better player and a bigger influence on us than even I'd imagined. He's scary fucking good. Suarez coming back well help in breaking down sides that adopt a similar approach too.

- Sakho looked poor. Diving in and going to ground continually is a real worry. He did it 4 times and it really could have cost us. the one where Mignolet palmed out and Skrtel blocked Bony from scoring was an awful bit of defending. He just launched himself at nothing needlessly. If you're going to ground like that you've got to take either ball or man. He missed both and Michu waltzed past him. Good centre backs don't go to ground like that. Looks composed on the ball which is what you'd expect from somebody who cost 17M, but he better improve defensively quickly.

- We needed somebody to control the game from midfield in the second half. A Carrick in the side at 2-1 up would have been ideal. Manage the tempo. We didn't, we were kamikaze back and forth. I thought Gerrard was poor to be honest.

 

[Gary25]

Good analysis Ryan. And yeah I thought Lucas was out of order having a go at Shelvey when there was no need to.

Agree about Sakho, he'll have to sharpen up and quickly. Impressed with how dominant he looks in the air though.

Not to many people touching on Mignolet's contribution, another fine game imo. Bailed us out at crucial moments.

 

[Ryan]

Good analysis Ryan. And yeah I thought Lucas was out of order having a go at Shelvey when there was no need to.

Agree about Sakho, he'll have to sharpen up and quickly. Impressed with how dominant he looks in the air though.

Not to many people touching on Mignolet's contribution, another fine game imo. Bailed us out at crucial moments.

He's got a tendency to palm relatively easy shots straight back out in front of him. Had Skrtel not been more alert on a couple of occasions, we'd have conceded more.

 

[Gary25]

He's got a tendency to palm relatively easy shots straight back out in front of him. Had Skrtel not been more alert on a couple of occasions, we'd have conceded more.

True, and his distribution can improve as well.

I do like him though, he's not afraid to smash into other players, he has quick reactions and is way more agile than Pepe of the last few years.

 

[Ryan]

True, and his contribution can improve as well.

I do like him though, he's not afraid to smash into other players, he has quick reactions and is way more agile than Pepe of the last few years.

Yep, agreed.

 

[Farkmaster]

Is our primary philosophy still to keep the ball?

 

[Frogfish]

Errrr....he's out injured for ages. I was talking about the options we have without him. So wind your fucking neck in.

Oops. My apologies then, thought you were another Johnson hater. *sheepsih smile*

 

[Frogfish]

A bit more, I think. But I must stress that was just my impression, the doc didn't seem to pop anything back in so hopefully it was something much less painful.

Eh ? Mel Gibson puts his back in by slamming himself against a pillar and is right as rain in just 2 mins (Lethal Weapon - 3 I think) ! Countinho's a wimp if he needs more time than that.

 

[Frogfish]

Sterling's a strange one. He's got pace when he's on the shoulder of defenders and running into the area but if he gets the ball deeper with a defender ahead of him I never expect him to try to accelerate past them, let alone succeed in that. I don't know if it's a lack of strength or confidence or both, but he seems pointless if we're not feeding him the ball deep in the opposition's half. Ibe, on the other hand, could have taken the ball in his own half and actually bombed on, or held it up. He's looking a much more well-rounded and positive player at this stage.

Yes I've wondered a bit about just why Rodgers persists in having Ibe on the bench but always prefering to bring on Sterling. Ibe's bulk and pace would have helped us more last night.

 

[Zlate]

Wisdom needs to go out on loan and be nowhere near our first 11. Terrible performance, terrible tracking of Michu for the goal, let him walk straight past to get that goal.

 

[LeTallecWiz]

- We needed somebody to control the game from midfield in the second half. A Carrick in the side at 2-1 up would have been ideal. Manage the tempo. We didn't, we were kamikaze back and forth. I thought Gerrard was poor to be honest.

Maybe Lucas, as Gerrard was pushing up field for some reason? Carrick wouldn't be in our side because he plays Lucas's position ...

I also don't think any player would have been able to settle us - which we desperately needed - as every player wass kicking the ball aimlessly up the field.

 

[Holle]

Watching Aspas makes my eyes bleed.

What a waste of money.

 

[doctor_mac]

A win against Southampton and this result will probably be looked upon in a better light than most of us are viewing it right now. However, I can't help but worry our failure to strengthen the midfield in the summer is coming back to haunt us.

When you consider our possession stats in the 2nd Half were in the low 30's, for a team whose primary philosophy is to keep the ball, that's a shocking stat and it needs to be addressed. I think it was only partially due to the loss of Coutinho, as he offers clever movement as part of a midfield triangle ahead of a mainly static Lucas/Gerrard and a link to our fwds, but it was impossible to ignore the lacklustre display by our captain.

If we accept, as it now seems that he doesn't have the legs to get into the box and offer a goal threat, and he has Lucas playing the sitting role, he needs to be demanding the ball and dictating the play, giving it , getting it back, probing and directing our midfield. Everything should go through him in that role as we know thats not Lucas's game. Also, his movement when he didn't have the ball, was non-existant at times. From what I could see, he seemed to be happy to or under instruction to play as a 2nd Lucas, a purely defensive role, in just passing to Coutinho to create our play.

Also, if he is going to play so deep, he needs to be able to track the oppositions midfield runners, something he neglected to do when Shelvey made that run fwd for Michu's equaliser. Gerrard watched Shelvey run past him then only reacted to point to Skrtel to try and close him down. Concentration, fatigue, whatever the reason, it was far to easy for Shelvey to get into that position and it will be something other sides will look to exploit.

The best midfiled balance we've had in recent years was Alonso/Mascherano in what is now the Gerrard/Lucas roles, with vintage Gerrard operating in the role Coutinho now occupies. Gerrard is trying to play the Alonso role, but he's not that type of player and it really showed tonight. He can still whip in a great ball, whether it be from a set piece or open play, but as far as keeping the ball and maintaining some control over the midfield, he wasn't up to it tonight.

Throw in the way he turned his back on the Shelvey shot that lead to the first goal and it really was a night to forget for Stevie. I'm not writing him off, far from it, but at his age I think he needs to be used more sparingly where he can have a similar impact to what Gary McAllister gave us at a similar age. The fact we are limited in midfield options makes that unlikely at this moment though I expect and hope Rodgers will address this in the January window.

Having said all that, we're still top of the league!

Great post Khalido. As was mentioned last night, he looks like he is rationing effort during games, basically because he hasn't got it in him to move for the full 90. We *have* to deal with it. If SG knows from the start of the game he is getting hooked on 60-70 then he can expend more effort, and have more impact.

I also think we're suffering from a similar problem in respect of Sturridge (and yesterday, Moses too) actually. He hasn't had a preseason and whilst he plays the first half in a relatively full-blooded fashion, you can see him rationing his effort. In the second half he did next to no closing down or chasing back, and allied to the fact that Moses was also dead on his feet after 65 minutes it meant that other than Hendo nobody was preventing them from building the play. We were totally exposed. Once Suarez comes back and Sturridge/ Moses build their stamina, then we'll hopefully be able to properly play the pressing game and get control of the ball for much more of the game.

 

[Athens]

Once Suarez comes back and Sturridge/ Moses build their stamina, then we'll hopefully be able to properly play the pressing game and get control of the ball for much more of the game.

That's what I'm hoping for. Plus we will have Coutinho, as long as the opposition just don't decide to take him out during matches.

 

[Mystic]

- Sakho looked poor. Diving in and going to ground continually is a real worry. He did it 4 times and it really could have cost us.

It did cost us, both of Swansea's goals came through Sakho's awful defending, the first goal directly from the situation you're describing, we'd have won if Agger was playing. I have no doubt he'll end up being a great defender for us, but it's going to take some time for him to adapt.

 

[LeTallecWiz]

It did cost us, both of Swansea's goals came through Sakho's awful defending, the first goal directly from the situation you're describing, we'd have won if Agger was playing. I have no doubt he'll end up being a great defender for us, but it's going to take some time for him to adapt.

and get match fitness ...

 

[Dreambeliever]

Yes.
He was excellent but he's 32 and if you think he's going to be first name on the team sheet every week you'll get a shock.

What age is Gerrard who plays in a much more demanding position?

 

[Mystic]

and get match fitness ...

Exactly, although I think his mistakes were down to being over eager, and not being quite used to the system/league yet. He looked fantastic otherwise.

 

[Pesam]

Wisdom needs to go out on loan and be nowhere near our first 11. Terrible performance, terrible tracking of Michu for the goal, let him walk straight past to get that goal.

And we should only loan him to someone who's gonna play him at CB. No matter how much he improves he's never going to be a decent RB.

 

[LeTallecWiz]

Exactly, although I think his mistakes were down to being over eager, and not being quite used to the system/league yet. He looked fantastic otherwise.

You're wrong. Sakho'shit should be flogged off asap so we don't lose too much on our investment.

 

[gkmacca]

And we should only loan him to someone who's gonna play him at CB. No matter how much he improves he's never going to be a decent RB.

Well he was off to Wigan to do just that before he was kept as cover, which didn't really make much sense seeing as Inglethorpe has been charged with coaching him to be a CB. McLaughlin should be the reserve right back.

 

[nealmac]

I think with a bit of decent coaching, Sakho will be a great player. Having only seen 1 game, he's commanding in the air, and he's good on the ball. His defending needs to be worked on. As Ryan said, he's going to ground too easily without making certain of getting the ball.

 

[Jack D Rips]

Is our primary philosophy still to keep the ball?

In the first half it is. In the second have our primary philosophy is to keep giving the ball away.

 

[gkmacca]

It's a bit harsh complaining about Lucas having a go at Shelvey. It was incredibly out of character for Lucas and we don't know what was said, but that can happen in the heat of the moment. You don't freeze time, retire to the library, puff on a pipe and consider the possible range of consequences before returning to the encounter. Yes it had a negative impact but so do most clashes that any player has from time to time. If it was a regular thing it would be maddening but Lucas is less likely to be involved in something like that than Gerrard is. The more important point is that Lucas was seriously under-appreciated last night, he was one of the few players holding things together in the second half.

 

[Silver Sean]

It's a bit harsh complaining about Lucas having a go at Shelvey. It was incredibly out of character for Lucas and we don't know what was said, but that can happen in the heat of the moment. You don't freeze time, retire to the library, puff on a pipe and consider the possible range of consequences before returning to the encounter. Yes it had a negative impact but so do most clashes that any player has from time to time. If it was a regular thing it would be maddening but Lucas is less likely to be involved in something like that than Gerrard is. The more important point is that Lucas was seriously under-appreciated last night, he was one of the few players holding things together in the second half.

Agree. Our midfield worries me though. When Coutinho went off we lost the ability to give it to anyone up top who could make it stick and bring Sturridge into play. We were dreadful with the ball in the second half. At least Henderson and Lucas put a shift in. Moses should have been hooked after 60 mins.
BUT. We still haven't lost, Suarez is available soon (for how long fuck knows) we had a knew CB partnership playing together for the first time and we have 10 points after just 4 games. a win at home against Soton and we're in good shape.