Downing

In Skrtel I place my faith <3

Its harsh to right him off just yet. I can see where u coming from but that's when he plays on the right. He gets predictable as he keeps cutting in. His best position without a doubt is on the left. He has great pace and tremendous delivery...just the type of player we had been crying out for years. Give him time lads

Downing was the worst player on the pitch vs. West Brom.......Kenny should drop him with this kind of form, Bellamy still has it. But in the winter transfer window, we'll need another winger in the squad.

Downing has been off-color for last few games. We should try Bellamy or Maxi in the next few. We have depth and should use that.

Pathetic C*nt. Hope he fooks off

Bad, bad game..

Bellamy should of started, even if he sat down all game he would of been more usefull then this guy

I simply don't understand what has happened to him. Sure, we overpaid. He wasn't worth 20 million, but he was a good, consistent winger when fit for Aston Villa. Why he can't muster some semblance of that form is absolutely beyond me. A diminished return is not optimal, but understandable given the change in expectations, system and personnel. Downing really hasn't had any tangible return whatsoever. He's had "good" games where he has contributed to the effort, but there has never been any tangible return. Where are the assists? Where are the goals? I have tried to defend him this season, but if he cannot manage any tangible return there is nothing anyone can do for him.

I have to admit my patience is running out with him as well. We are well past the first half of the season and while he has done well on multiple occasions, his end product is lacking at the moment. I believed he's come good in due time, but it's been a while.

It doesn't always happen for you when you move into a new team. If that happens to your club, it's just bad luck, I guess.

Pretty sad to see such negative response towards him as I myself am wearing thin of his uninspired performances.

We cannot forget his glimpses of brilliance and performance early on in the season but hasn't Downing always been in that stage? His 'potential' stage and moments of brilliance?

I personally say despite his foot choice that he should be placed on the right wing and not the left. Why?

Downing on the right actually cuts in, is less timid to take on defenders, has a better angle on the goal and is generally more dangerous on the right.

On the left he is more predictable than Jermaine Pennant as all he does is run down and cross in.

As for yesterdays performance? I forgot he was on the pitch.

Starting today over Bellamy. Could be costly.

He's been our best player by far in the first half so far....Bellamy should be brought on for Hendo

Been immense so far today... Without a doubt our best player on the field. Hope he can keep the form into the league.

Official MOTM.

Fantastic first 60 minutes for Downing, great penalty at the end when others (Adam) were bottling it. Well in from Downing today and long may it continue.

This is the Downing I thought we signed in the summer. If he can keep contributing like h did in the final, he will be a good player for us. I just wish he hadn't taken so long to figure it out.

Mentally weak player that only impresses against mediocre sides.

Start him in the FA cup semi.

don't get wtf is wrong with him. He was really a very good player at Midlesborough and then Aston Villa. Not just against small sides but even in big games.

If you look at his last few seasons, the first season with Villa was underwhelming, too. In 25 appearances he scored 2 goals and had 1 assist. If I remember correctly, the Villa fans were quite frustrated with him, much the same as we have been at times. Then last season he settles in, finding his form, and scores 7 with 7 assists. (I wish I had more information on "chances created" but I can't find a site that stores that stat.) In other words, this may be him taking time to settle. In that case, we should definitely continue to give him a chance into next season. Of course, I could also be totally wrong, and he could simply not be capable of playing consistently at the highest level.

donttreadonred wrote:If you look at his last few seasons, the first season with Villa was underwhelming, too. In 25 appearances he scored 2 goals and had 1 assist. If I remember correctly, the Villa fans were quite frustrated with him, much the same as we have been at times. Then last season he settles in, finding his form, and scores 7 with 7 assists. (I wish I had more information on "chances created" but I can't find a site that stores that stat.) In other words, this may be him taking time to settle. In that case, we should definitely continue to give him a chance into next season. Of course, I could also be totally wrong, and he could simply not be capable of playing consistently at the highest level.

He has created a ton of chances for Liverpool. But what one has to keep in mind is:

a) A number of the chances have just been crosses.
b) Even then, it's up to the person receiving the cross to finish the chance.

Unfortunately, I don't think he's quite fitting into the style of play we want. We've seen his good contributions in glimpses here and there. Hopefully, if he is kept on, he settles in well.

But that is also down to the manager and the style that he is trying to implement within the team.

poolsupporter wrote:He has created a ton of chances for Liverpool. But what one has to keep in mind is:

a) A number of the chances have just been crosses.
b) Even then, it's up to the person receiving the cross to finish the chance.

Unfortunately, I don't think he's quite fitting into the style of play we want. We've seen his good contributions in glimpses here and there. Hopefully, if he is kept on, he settles in well.

But that is also down to the manager and the style that he is trying to implement within the team.

I get your point about the crosses and chances created, but I was just curious to know. I'm not trying to say that his chances created stat justifies his overall contribution this season. (Though, we could be singing another tune if Suarez, Carroll and Kuyt would've put away a few of those.)

I would actually disagree that he cannot fit into the system we've been playing. One reason he hasn't fit into the system is that he's still being used as a traditional winger. To be effective in this system he has to play as an inside-out winger on the right side (finding his shooting boots would be a welcome first step). He's shown he can do this effectively in his second season at Villa. I'm sure you all remember. It's the one we bought him for, hoping he could reproduce those results. He's not ideal for the system, in that he isn't truly a wide striker, but he does provide genuine width and can cut in and shoot from the right. Round out the front three with a goal-scorer on the left (ala Bellamy, Hoillett, Ba, etc.) and you have a dangerous combination. The basic model is very similar to Bayern Munich with Robben and Ribery on the flanks.

Of course, the big "if" in this plan is whether or not Downing can find himself next season. I wouldn't be surprised to see us sign at least one winger within the intention of replacing or paring him with Downing. I also think we'll continue to see a front 3, as I believe it fits with Daglish's nebulous description of his ideal flowing, pass-and-move style. If we truly aren't going to play Big Andy, we might as well fully embrace this system, as it gives us the ability of putting as many strikers in the area as possible and allowing Suarez to play provider from a central position. The make-up of which will depend on summer signings:

New wide forward - Suarez - Downing
or...
Suarez - New CF/ST - Downing

I think the first set-up is most likely, as Daglish has been reluctant to play Suarez anywhere but in the center of the attack. It's clear we want him to touch the ball as many times as humanly possible during a game, and for good reason. The problem this season is that Downing on the left isn't going to provide a wealth of goals and Hendo... Well, Hendo barely plays wide midfield, much less wide forward. THis is one of the reasons Bellamy has looked so good at times this season. THE SYSTEM ACTUALLY FITS HIS PLAYING STYLE. If only he were 5-7 years younger.

But I digress... (As if that were a surprise.)

Great performance today against Everton. Impressive.

Have to say Downing has really improved since the Carling Cup Motm. I was very critical of him up to that point but its great to see him putting in good performances now.