Balo was fine. Most of the team was fine actually. We just weren't clinical and had chances to score but couldn't put them away. It happens. City just lost to ****ing Stoke at home. Some of the people on this board love their knee-jerk and picking on players. Lovren was not even bad lol.

Still a young and inexperienced team. Peaks and valleys. Conceding a flukey scramble on a set piece and then not scoring on a bunch of chances happens. I do think that we need to be a bit more clinical though because against City it was the same story...lots of chances but no finish.

Balotelli did mostly good things with the ball, but the baffling problem was that it was always on the wings or nearer the center circle than their goal. He needed to stay up top instead of leaving players like Markovic and Lallana drift into the box to take up the center-forward's position.

Been getting pumped all day for gerrards slip before the goal, why always stevie .

Nishy wrote:How many games has Lallana played for us?

How many games this season has Coutinho played well for us?

I still see Lallana the best of our signings after Moreno. Balo needs to step up.

There's a big difference between the cases of Coutinho and Lallana. Coutinho was brought in from a different league for relatively peanuts and as a future prospect (he's still 22 ffs) whereas Lallana is expected to start firing all cylinders immediately as he's well established in this league and in his prime years. I'll cut him some slack because it was his first game for us but these are the games where he is supposed to prove his worth.. instead he played like a schoolboy the entire game.

^ It wash is first game since May 11th, with no pre season at all, and yet he still was main part of our second most dangerous move of all game ...but yea, go ahead.

Anyways, it's obvious BR just had a lapse against Lambert.
Since August 2010, Rodgers and Lambert have gone head to head 9 times:

Rodgers wins: 3
Lambert wins: 5
Draw: 1

wtf

I'll cut him some slack because it was his first game for us

that will do...

Also Gerrard is not convincing me that he should be a surefire starter for this team much longer, if at all.

El Cujo wrote:Also Gerrard is not convincing me that he should be a surefire starter for this team much longer, if at all.

What did he do wrong this time?

Some of the comments disgust me in this thread.

Not much to say about this game aside from the fact that we have no excuse to lose (at home) to a pathetic team like Aston Villa with an even more pathetic manager in Paul *bleep* Lambert.

Lallana's signing was absurd (and always will be) yet no point criticizing an attacking player coming off an injury and being slotted directly into a new team with a new semantic.

Lovren? Well it doesn't surprise me as I also was never a fan of his signature given he does not fit the standard of what we hope to achieve in our defence.

Balotelli will actually perform once people stop thinking of him as a centre-forward yet actually use him for the SS he is, playing off a more mobile defender. You do not have a player of his characteristic being tasked to lead the line for you, because he can't.

Rodgers while undoutedly outstanding for us really needs to learn the tactical side of the game as some of his decisions at times look more as rolling dice than actual deliberate exposition behind the idea.

If we expect even to reach a now more competative Top 4, we cannot afford to drop points at home versus a pathetic team like Villa. Yet then again how can we call this home considering the Anfield "faithfuls" continue to break the record of the most silent stadium in all of football, today. Pathetic support.

Don't call me James wrote:Some of the comments disgust me in this thread.

This section has really gone off boil since our title challenge last year. There was a feeling of togetherness and unity among us all LFC section members all last season....now it's all gone sadly

the problem was BR thought that putting Marko, Lallana, Coutinho and Balo together will solve the problem and automatically goals will come but it doesnt work like that. There was absolutely no chemistry between players and the movement among the players was so rigid; everyone tried to do things individually. So hopefully we will perform better as the season progresses.

Arquitescu wrote:Not much to say about this game aside from the fact that we have no excuse to lose (at home) to a pathetic team like Aston Villa with an even more pathetic manager in Paul *bleep* Lambert.

Lallana's signing was absurd (and always will be) yet no point criticizing an attacking player coming off an injury and being slotted directly into a new team with a new semantic.

Lovren? Well it doesn't surprise me as I also was never a fan of his signature given he does not fit the standard of what we hope to achieve in our defence.

Balotelli will actually perform once people stop thinking of him as a centre-forward yet actually use him for the SS he is, playing off a more mobile defender. You do not have a player of his characteristic being tasked to lead the line for you, because he can't.

Rodgers while undoutedly outstanding for us really needs to learn the tactical side of the game as some of his decisions at times look more as rolling dice than actual deliberate exposition behind the idea.

If we expect even to reach a now more competative Top 4, we cannot afford to drop points at home versus a pathetic team like Villa. Yet then again how can we call this home considering the Anfield "faithfuls" continue to break the record of the most silent stadium in all of football, today. Pathetic support.

Art Morte wrote:

El Cujo wrote:Also Gerrard is not convincing me that he should be a surefire starter for this team much longer, if at all.

What did he do wrong this time?

What did he do well? At this point I don't think he has the tank, mobility or defensive awareness to work in this team the way we want him to. Just IMO. I love Stevie, always will, he will go down in history as arguably the greatest Liverpool player ever IMO. That said I think at this point if we're going to get serious about competing in the CL and the EPL he would be best used as a early substitute who can contribute leadership, experience and be a set piece specialist.

Again, just IMO. I would really like to see the 4-2-3-1 tried. Or a 4-4-2 similar to what City does that's more like a 4-2-2-2, or have a real holding midfielder that can also distribute the ball well. Gerrard has just looked off to me since the season start...has not really been great (not horrible mind) at anything and looks old to me. I hope he can rebound and prove me wrong.

^ We've tried 4-2-3-1 in both our home games so far and we've looked impotent in both of them . It was sad playing 4-2-3-1 on saturday seeing Henderson dropping between CBs to pick up the ball.

Natalie Portman wrote:^ We've tried 4-2-3-1 in both our home games so far and we've looked impotent in both of them . It was sad playing 4-2-3-1 on saturday seeing Henderson dropping between CBs to pick up the ball.

When I say 4-2-3-1 also I mean without Gerrard who is not mobile or defensively intelligent enough to play a double pivot.


Is what I would like to see whenever we're playing a 1 striker formation. Whenever Gerrard is in I feel it is necessary to run a 3 or 4 man midfield to accomodate him.

Or, if we have two strikers a more attacking shaped 4-4-2 like:


Sterling, Markovic and Lallana all have very high work-rates and track back hard. Coutinho is also working that into his game.

El Cujo wrote:

Art Morte wrote:

El Cujo wrote:Also Gerrard is not convincing me that he should be a surefire starter for this team much longer, if at all.

What did he do wrong this time?

What did he do well? At this point I don't think he has the tank, mobility or defensive awareness to work in this team the way we want him to. Just IMO. I love Stevie, always will, he will go down in history as arguably the greatest Liverpool player ever IMO. That said I think at this point if we're going to get serious about competing in the CL and the EPL he would be best used as a early substitute who can contribute leadership, experience and be a set piece specialist.

Again, just IMO. I would really like to see the 4-2-3-1 tried. Or a 4-4-2 similar to what City does that's more like a 4-2-2-2, or have a real holding midfielder that can also distribute the ball well. Gerrard has just looked off to me since the season start...has not really been great (not horrible mind) at anything and looks old to me. I hope he can rebound and prove me wrong.

For my money Gerrard is filling that DM role just fine. His area has not been a problem. He hasn't got great mobility, no, but that isn't required in the role he plays for us. His defensive awareness is just fine and his ability to pass the ball is a real asset. I don't feel he's hindering our game at all and am happy to have him starting as much as possible this season.

Art making amends for that thread 2 years back

Morty

Art Morte wrote:For my money Gerrard is filling that DM role just fine. His area has not been a problem. He hasn't got great mobility, no, but that isn't required in the role he plays for us. His defensive awareness is just fine and his ability to pass the ball is a real asset. I don't feel he's hindering our game at all and am happy to have him starting as much as possible this season.

His passing is great, yes, and his leadership is obviously a big deal but watch the game against Stoke again. Watch how many times he blows coverage, or makes a mistake. On the goal he is falling over for no reason where if he had been upright he would have blocked the ball. On a play a bit earlier to that he runs to cut off a ball, mistimes it, ends up heeling it back in towards our box and Lovren (IIRC) has to bail him out with a big clearance before a Stoke player can latch it.

I'm being a bit critical, obviously, and I don't really have a problem with him playing there, but I think if we want to step up and beat the best or be the best his days are numbered as a starter.