We don't need him. .

[Portly]

My vote wouldn't go to Suarez because every so often he does something alarming which would be magnified if he was captain! (I'm not including the Evra thing in that comment because I don't think he did anything wrong). 🙂

 

[refugee]

Perhaps it would help if they took the captaincy off Gerrard. Sure, many fans would say that was unfair, but I thought it was pretty unfair when they took it off Sami Hyypia, who had never put a foot wrong. I don't think Gerrard has been an ideal captain. He just tends to carp at the others, particularly when he is having an off-day himself. Carra was much better at it when he deputised.

I think that would be madness. Suarez said after the Spurs game that there was only one captain at Liverpool and that was Steven Gerrard. If Suarez respects him then I don't see why anybody else wouldn't.

 

[gkmacca]

An ideal would be to somehow mimic the setup molby had, as Gerrard does have that range of passing, & despite not having a massive arse to keep the opposition at bay, is strong enough & commands enough fear/respect to be able to put his foot on the ball.

That's a really imaginative idea which, obviously, never occurred to me. I think that would be a really interesting experiment.

 

[Athens]

Either that or a Gary macallister role is what he needs in order to justify a regular place if the rest of the midfield performs to a good standard with the energy they showed at the weekend.

I do believe I had suggested this a few weeks ago...

Someone get Rodgers on the phone!

 

[Le Chacal]

We dont need Lucas

 

[FoxForceFive]

We dont need Lucas

Ok, fine.

Name a team without him to play against city please.

No don't actually, it won't work.

I'd argue we need better than him, but to say we don't need him when he's arguably the only defensive midfielder we have & the only player capable of even attempting that role successfully is needed in Stevie's place is madness.

 

[Le Chacal]

Ok, fine.

Name a team without him to play against city please.

No don't actually, it won't work.

I'd argue we need better than him, but to say we don't need him when he's arguably the only defensive midfielder we have & the only player capable of even attempting that role successfully is needed in Stevie's place is madness.

I mean when Gerrard is fit...Having said that we need to find Stevie's sucessor and another midfielder as both Lucas and Allen are not good enough.
I'd play same team for next few games

 

[Portly]

Lucas and Allen were good enough on Sunday! You can't argue against 5-0 at a ground where we have failed dismally in recent seasons. 🙂

 

[Woland]

That was a blip. We're actually shit.

 

[Le Chacal]

Allen had a decent game but Lucas was average again with his usual dodgy challenges and passes just outside our box when we were 1 or 2 nil up..
Id play Gerrard there when he's back

 

[Fabio]

I think we just can't have a dominant midfield over 90 minutes with Gerrard in the team.

He can't harry nearly as well as the other 3 due to lack of stamina, and it's probably why our second half performances go to shit.

Yes he offers a lot in passing and set pieces, but if we're playing catch up after losing control in midfield, then we need to weigh the risks

Gerrard couldn't do a job at DM. He'd have to relearn his entire trade in the twilight of his career, and I'm not convinced he's got the mentality to not be star of the show.

 

[keniget]

He can't harry nearly as well as the other 3 due to lack of stamina, and it's probably why our second half performances go to shit.

We might well have seen a familiar second half performance against Spurs if Paulinho hadn't gotten himself sent off. We were starting to tire.

But we don't show that level of intensity in every game anyways. Against the weaker sides we will have more possession and therefore don't need to work quite as hard. What you want to focus on is pressing and winning the ball higher up the pitch. Gerrard or a player like him is fine in those games.

 

[Spionkop69]

I've said elsewhere that, with his intelligence and his technique, he can still be a crucial player for us and we should drain every last drop of his genius, but two things have to happen. One is that he needs a precise role. At the moment he is doing a bit of everything, just like he used to, but a bit less of everything, because he lacks the old stamina and power. And that wrecks the rest of the midfield. Players are playing around him, and he isn't doing enough, regularly enough. If there's greater precision to what he does and the rest do, as Italy have with Pirlo, then great. Otherwise it's a godawful mess. The second thing is his attitude: he has to play for the team, the team can't play for him. He can't keep wandering around until the fancy takes him to go on a run. Beckham wrecked Gerrard's early England career by acting like that. And just as one shot going in obscured about 88 minutes of Beckham's wayward punts and misplaced passes, so one great ball or a fine assist has recently obscured Gerrard's painfully pedestrian and incoherent performances as a bit of a defensive midfielder, a bit of a central midfielder and a bit of an attacking midfielder, and a bit of a spectator. Come back and fit into a dynamic midfield, great. Come back to do the 'Gerrard role', no thanks.

You know what, if you're able to look at this post objectively, which granted some cant or wont. There's plenty to agree with here.

The comparison to Beckham is particularly relevant. The Greece qualification game was the issue in a microcosm. He scores the goal, in the last minute, to secure automatic qualification. Forgotten are the seven previous free kicks from various positions where Lord Sir David Beckham would not and indeed could not allow anyone else to steal his thunder. Or his constant forays infield from his position on the right, leaving gaping gaps for the Greeks to counter into.

This is not quite Gerrard. Yet. But its surely clear to see that the swashbuckling, 90 minute Gerrard pulling irons out of fires is no longer a consistent or feasible expectation. Or is it? If we actually looked to define his role and he was disciplined to play it, then yes, Gerrard can still be part of what we have here.

But lets decide his role and get him to play it for the team. He would not have been able to keep up the high pressing tempo that our midfield trio kept up v Spurs. That's denigrating him, thats just simple pragmatism.

I want Gerrard to keep playing for us, because he can deliver a moment of magic. Lets make sure we define things correctly so that he can keep on delivering the good and reduce the chances of him looking leggy and caught out.

 

[RolandG]

I see Henderson and Allen getting all the plaudits but Lucas never put a foot wrong against Spurs. I though that he was immense. He cleaned up nicely and got the ball moving. That he cut out the silly fouls made a difference because it didn't cause us undue pressure. We were superb at pressing Spurs and winning the ball back. I never had faith in the midfield trio of Lucas-Allen-Henderson to dominate Spurs but I called it for henderson to play at the apex of the trio as he has the engine to run non-stop and close down players. I hope that the lads do the same against Cardiff and show that it wasn't a one-off as we need that type of performance against Cardiff, Chelsea and Citeh.

 

[peekay]

As much as I enjoyed the midfield display, let us not get overboard here. The next time we meet a disciplined defense and a midfield who can press and harry us giving us less time on the ball, there is a high chance that Allen, Lucas, Henderson go back to status quo and we start counting the days back for the return of Gerrard.

 

[RolandG]

As much as I enjoyed the midfield display, let us not get overboard here. The next time we meet a disciplined defense and a midfield who can press and harry us giving us less time on the ball, there is a high chance that Allen, Lucas, Henderson go back to status quo and we start counting the days back for the return of Gerrard.

Nobody is going overboard. the players deserve all the plaudits they are getting. They put is a magnificent shift and we are appreciating their efforts. that was a HUGE result.

After all, these are 3 players that have gotten their fair share of stick from all and sundry at different times because they were deemed not good enough.

 

[Mamma Mia]

I see Henderson and Allen getting all the plaudits but Lucas never put a foot wrong against Spurs. I though that he was immense. He cleaned up nicely and got the ball moving. That he cut out the silly fouls made a difference because it didn't cause us undue pressure. We were superb at pressing Spurs and winning the ball back. I never had faith in the midfield trio of Lucas-Allen-Henderson to dominate Spurs but I called it for henderson to play at the apex of the trio as he has the engine to run non-stop and close down players. I hope that the lads do the same against Cardiff and show that it wasn't a one-off as we need that type of performance against Cardiff, Chelsea and Citeh.

Apparently that's Lucas being average, which will do just fine for me.

 

[peekay]

Nobody is going overboard.

I am not a native English speaker and my understanding of the subtleties of the English language may not be as good as most others. But if you have a thread whose title is "We don't need him" with a reference to Steven Gerrard after one display, my interpretation is that people are going a wee bit overboard.

Agree with the rest of your post with respect to plaudits.

 

[RolandG]

I am not a native English speaker and my understanding of the subtleties of the English language may not be as good as most others. But if you have a thread whose title is "We don't need him" with a reference to Steven Gerrard after one display, my interpretation is that people are going a wee bit overboard.

Agree with the rest of your post with respect to plaudits.

Like I said earlier, RedNinja is trippin' on that shite he is smokin'

Gerrard's role withing the team will evolve much like it has for England.

 

[gkmacca]

There's that old saying, 'There's no "OFF" on the genius switch,' and maybe that's part of the problem. Gerrard still has a lot of pace for someone his age, and a lot of power, but not enough to last the 90 minutes any more. So he is clearly trying to husband his energy. And, for a player like him, that must be tough to keep turning it on and off. I imagine, having been an all-action player, to have to keep making decisions about when to push on and when to hold himself back, when to go on an old-style run and when to rest, is much tougher than he expected. It must also be distracting to the other midfielders, wondering 'What's he up to now? Have I got to cover for him? Can I rely on him to support me here or is he just going to stand and watch?' That's why I think the more clearly the whole team is told what his role is to be the better it will be.

 

[Le Chacal]

We were 2nd with Gerrard playing every single minute with 3 goals and 6 assists before Spurs game werent we?

 

[FoxForceFive]

Can't remember what match it was, but earlier in the season he came out for the second half & played full tempo, we were winning & it's blatantly obvious he'd been told he was coming off on 60/65 mins, it was the best spell I've seen him do, cos he didn't have to play within himself to get through the full match.

I'd prefer to see that Gerrard for 60 minutes every couple of matches than the hamstrung version we see regularly now.

 

[Woland]

There's that old saying, 'There's no "OFF" on the genius switch,'

Not true. I got over being more clever than anyone I know by drinking so heavily for so long I can finally almost understand some of your pathetic customs.

 

[Rosco]

We were 2nd with Gerrard playing every single minute with 3 goals and 6 assists before Spurs game werent we?

We've won 100% of the games he hasn't played.


(one game!)

 

[Spaghetti Legs]

That sums up the issue nicely, & perhaps in doing so highlights what could be a fatal or at least major flaw for Rodgers.

In his understandable need to get the fans onside one of the main factors was to become a massive eulogist for Gerrard & to seemingly promise him the earth to do so.

It seems from the outside that it's meant he has to play Gerrard, & not just that, but play him in that pivotal role in the centre, which has pushed out Allen, reduced Henderson's influence on the match & hamstrung Lucas by having him share defensive duties for most of a match then have him cover more ground when stevie tires (I'd be interested to see how many yellow cards Lucas gets in a match time line, as I feel they're often late on when he's covering more ground).

An ideal would be to somehow mimic the setup molby had, as Gerrard does have that range of passing, & despite not having a massive arse to keep the opposition at bay, is strong enough & commands enough fear/respect to be able to put his foot on the ball.

Either that or a Gary macallister role is what he needs in order to justify a regular place if the rest of the midfield performs to a good standard with the energy they showed at the weekend.

This is an interesting point, there was a linked analysis posted in a thread yesterday, it had Lucas as only winning 1 tackle all game from 1 tackle attempted, thats mad if true, our DM only needing to put in 1 tackle away to Spurs, it just rubber stamps how well those players in front of him performed.

 

[FoxForceFive]

This is an interesting point, there was a linked analysis posted in a thread yesterday, it had Lucas as only winning 1 tackle all game from 1 tackle attempted, thats mad if true, our DM only needing to put in 1 tackle away to Spurs, it just rubber stamps how well those players in front of him performed.

Yeah, I'm not a huge Lucas fan, but neither do I feel he's always a liability as some do, & I definitely feel that Gerrard's lack of energy/'legs' in the last 30 mins exposes him unnecessarily & means he has to work a lot more.

 

[Spaghetti Legs]

Yeah, I'm not a huge Lucas fan, but neither do I feel he's always a liability as some do, & I definitely feel that Gerrard's lack of energy/'legs' in the last 30 mins exposes him unnecessarily & means he has to work a lot more.

Yeah and it can make Lucas look bad by being streched/having to be everywhere, giving away fouls etc...

If Lucas is protected more in front like the other day then it simply makes his job so much easier and everything more solid.

Lucas is a strange one, i've always been up and down about him but no way would i ever sell him, always a place in the squad at the very least.

 

[FoxForceFive]

Well at the weekend he, Allen & Henderson 'hunted in packs', always close together until we broke forward, & closed down more effectively than practically any team we've had since the best of the Rafa days.

I'd be interested in seeing a more in depth stat attack on those three during that match, to see if the ball was won more through interceptions.

 

[Hansern]

Allen made 7 tackles on Sunday I think

 

[Spaghetti Legs]

It was with Lucas, 8 interceptions i think it was.