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Pre Match - Ajax (A) - Wednesday 20:00

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gkmacca said:
We're not a soft team at all, we're a very aggressive pressing team. We just don't do GBH like Everton do. Gerrard was the last of the mad dog breed as far as our side is concerned. His ridiculous am-dram 'scratching back of neck in bemusement' routine for the cameras when Rafa substituted him for Lucas - I loved Rafa for doing it.
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When I talk about being a hard team Im not talking about pressing. After that Richarlison tackle on Thiago the other day Gerrard would very likely have deliberately taken out one of their players in a 50/50 tackle first opportunity. Would it have helped us win the game, absolutely not, but its so frustrating watching our players get taken out by overly aggressive opponents (Everton and Utd away the two obvious instances) and just resort to pleading with the ref for protection.

There are some games where the refs just arent up to it and you need a couple of players willing to put their boot in and let the other side know that they wont be bullied.
 
We responded quite perfectly to the Richarlison tackle though. Kept our cool and found the winner in injury time. If it had not been for a non functioning VAR we would have had 3 points instead of 1.

Klopp has probably instilled this in the players mentality and its all about the reaction of a situation. Going overboard in the next 50/50 challenge to prove a point when the game is there to be won, sounds like a thing of the past. And why set you up for a potential red card yourself, or wasting time being scrappy.
Stay focused, control the situation and find the winner. Thats what winners do.

FWIW I dont think our players are soft at all. They stand up for each other, and you have the likes of Fabinho, Robertson and Mane that are switched on in these situations. I do miss a CB next to Virgil who has a bit of toughness in him though.
Matip and Gomez are to nice, and get bullied easily.
 
RedStar said:
When I talk about being a hard team Im not talking about pressing. After that Richarlison tackle on Thiago the other day Gerrard would very likely have deliberately taken out one of their players in a 50/50 tackle first opportunity. Would it have helped us win the game, absolutely not, but its so frustrating watching our players get taken out by overly aggressive opponents (Everton and Utd away the two obvious instances) and just resort to pleading with the ref for protection.

There are some games where the refs just arent up to it and you need a couple of players willing to put their boot in and let the other side know that they wont be bullied.
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I much prefer Henderson responding by putting the ball in the net. There's plenty of time after the game to abuse the opponent
 
Imagine called our team soft, jesus. We have a very tough team, both physically and mentally, they just play with respect of their opponents careers, nothing wrong with that, quite the contrary, it's exactly how everyone should play.
 
Also, as this is the Ajax thread, I'm hoping to see Keita back in tonight, and i'd also love it if we moved Mane central for Firmino and bought in Jota on the wing.
 
RedStar said:
When I talk about being a hard team Im not talking about pressing. After that Richarlison tackle on Thiago the other day Gerrard would very likely have deliberately taken out one of their players in a 50/50 tackle first opportunity. Would it have helped us win the game, absolutely not, but its so frustrating watching our players get taken out by overly aggressive opponents (Everton and Utd away the two obvious instances) and just resort to pleading with the ref for protection.

There are some games where the refs just arent up to it and you need a couple of players willing to put their boot in and let the other side know that they wont be bullied.
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If one of our players had done that he would have been sent off. I've no doubt about that. I've seen it in too many derbies - foul after foul against us, followed by a Gerrard-style response and our player goes off. That's the problem. If one of our players had attempted a fierce tackle soon after the Pickford GBH, Oliver would have reached for the red, no doubt. And if from now on we just assume that a similar attack is coming, so one of our players decides to give one of them a 'reducer,' we've become them. I just hate that fixture. It's toxic.
 
Think there is a chance that Bobby is rested tonight, and that we might see a Jota - Mane - Salah front three.
 
Adrian
TAA, Gomez, Fabinho, Robertson
Henderson, Wijnaldum, Jones;
Jota, Salah, Mane.

I'd like to see something like that. Maybe Milner instead of Jones or Henderson (if he needs eased back into playing regularly)
 
Right now we look better when Jota is on the pitch than when he's off it , I'd say he starts until that changes

Firmino hasn't looked at even close to his best for a while now , perhaps a kick up the arse is what he needs to recover some form
 
HC said:
Firmino hasn't looked at even close to his best for a while now , perhaps a kick up the arse is what he needs to recover some form
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It's strange though. It's not as if he's not fit, and his commitment has always been good, even when he hasn't been effective. I think one problem is he's coming way too deep, too often; the problem with that is that defenders know he's not going to run past them, so they're already looking to block his passing options, and then he ends up trying something ridiculously fancy and we lose the ball. I think he needs to revert to attacking those spaces in the area, making simple but clinical assists, and see where that takes him. It's a case of remembering what his game, at its best, really is. Until that happens I agree that Jota is a much more unpredictable and dangerous player in the positions to which Bobby has strayed recently.
 
gkmacca said:
It's strange though. It's not as if he's not fit, and his commitment has always been good, even when he hasn't been effective. I think one problem is he's coming way too deep, too often; the problem with that is that defenders know he's not going to run past them, so they're already looking to block his passing options, and then he ends up trying something ridiculously fancy and we lose the ball. I think he needs to revert to attacking those spaces in the area, making simple but clinical assists, and see where that takes him. It's a case of remembering what his game, at its best, really is. Until that happens I agree that Jota is a much more unpredictable and dangerous player in the positions to which Bobby has strayed recently.
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Im not sure , his passing being sloppy is the standout point with his recent performances to me and I suppose issues like that are more quantifiable under the skill or will argument than coming too deep etc

Bobby does strike me as someone who if played tonight , could score one or two and get his mojo back but it's alarming he even lost his mojo after a successful season for the club even if it wasn't stellar on a personal level wrt goals etc
 
If Bobby were to play too deep in one particular match Klopp would soon sort that out. So if it's now a regular thing (can't say I've noticed him playing deeper - especially when our defence is 4m higher than last season - which would mean he's virtually playing amongst our other CMs, which he clearly hasn't been) then it's by the coaching team's design and not off his own bat.

I agree with HC, his passing has seemed off recently, as well as his shooting/finishing.
 
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We struggle away from home in Europe but I fancy us tonight we played great on Saturday.
 
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