SAT in bored on a Sunday evening patiently waiting for the football season to start, I decided to watch an old episode of The Simpsons.
It was the one where Homer is forced to go to college to get a degree in nuclear physics and includes Mr Burns offering a washer/dryer or the mystery box as a bribe to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission officials “The box! The box!”, Homer running over the college dean as a ‘prank’, and a pig fainting.
It also happens to include one of the best lines ever from Homer. “Oh I’m going to lose my job just because I’m dangerously unqualified.”
So anyway, Alberto Moreno.
Before Tuesday night’s game with Roma the starting line-up revealed that James Milner would be in at left back. The ensuing excitement from Reds on Twitter loosely translated as ‘anyone but Moreno’. On awaking that morning to check the score, it became apparent that Moreno had come on in the second half and picked up an injury, which appeared to make a large amount of fans practically giddy with glee.
Thankfully it seems to have just been a dead leg, as opposed to the dead brain that many accuse him of possessing. However, it was uncomfortable seeing how genuinely happy many were that he’d been injured.
The general anti-Moreno diatribe was practically down to a simmer towards the end of last season after he showed some improvements in his game under Jürgen Klopp. Then 30 seconds into the second half of the Europa League final in Basel he undid all that good work and lost any faith he had left with a large amount of fans.
The former Sevilla man is synonymous with the words ‘brain fart’, a fan’s description for any moment where he gets caught upfield or throws in a mad challenge that possesses needless risk. It can wreck your head when you’re watching him, fearful that at any moment he could do something bonkers that puts a game in jeopardy.
But are we all being a bit harsh on the lad? Are we giving him a fair deal? Or are we just as irrational in our judgement of him as we perceive him to be every time he steps foot on the pitch?
I’ve tried to have calm and sensible discussions about him and all I usually get back is “He’s ALWAYS making mistakes and costing us goals. ALWAYS.” I can’t help but feel like if he was indeed ALWAYS costing us goals that Liverpool would have probably finished a lot further down the table, not made any cup finals and he’d have been dropped for Brad Smith or a rubber duck well before that night in Basel.
It’s been two years since Moreno arrived in England as yet another solution to our everlasting left back problem for the princely sum of £12million. He was hot property at the time after winning the Europa League with Sevilla, and it was even reported that Moreno intended to reject Liverpool due to apparent interest from Real Madrid.
However, he arrived at Anfield, scored ‘that’ goal against Tottenham at White Hart Lane and all of a sudden it looked like we had a potential star on our hands.
Goal Rush #LFC 2014/2015 Moreno vs Spurs. #lfc https://t.co/McJWcGduqD
— Anfield HQ (@AnfieldHQ) December 20, 2014
Three years later and several are dubbing him the worst left back the club has had since Julian Dicks (does no-one else remember Dossena or Konchesky?).
You may have noticed that Liverpool have been linked with approximately 343 left backs this summer, and the general consensus with each one is that ‘he must be better than Moreno’.
He certainly does make mistakes. He certainly can improve a lot further. But is he really ‘that’ bad?
As the old saying goes, you can use stats to prove anything, so let’s do that.
I took to Squawka to find out how the ‘top-knotted one’ compared to other highly regarded full backs in the Premier League. A fair few have said they’d like the Reds to sign local lad Aaron Cresswell (though he’s injured for a large part of next season now), while Danny Rose and Cesar Azpilicueta have come in for very high praise the last two years. Then of course there’s the steady, reliable, 7/10 or more every week Nathaniel Clyne, but how do they compare?
Across last season, Moreno won 69 tackles (I like to think that he aimed for that number deliberately). Cresswell only won 23, while Rose managed 56, Clyne 63 and Azpilicueta an impressive 86.
When you look at tackles lost, Moreno lost the most with 80. However, this is only four more than Azpilicueta, so it seems that both Spaniards are being attacked a lot more than their right back counterparts, in Moreno’s case possibly due to a pre-conceived idea that he’s pap.
It could also be that Moreno doesn’t get as much protection as Clyne. There were times last season where Klopp admitted that Moreno was practically the team’s entire left side given Coutinho’s propensity for coming into the middle, whereas on the right Clyne would have a much more disciplined Milner or Adam Lallana in front of him. As evidenced in the Europa League final, Coutinho’s defensive cover is far from the best and in some cases, non-existent, which puts Moreno under far more pressure than his right back colleague.
Rather astonishingly, Squawka has suggested that Moreno did not make a single mistake that led directly to a goal in the Premier League last season. I would argue that his daft penalty gifted to Norwich was one such occasion, but seems to have been missed off their statistics. Rose allowed one, while Cresswell is accused of directly causing three goals through errors.
Even if you’re sceptical about those stats, it’s still one in the eye for those who keep on shouting ‘how many goals does Moreno’s idiocy cost us?’ The answer is remarkably few considering the level of fume.
If you think that number is low because his mistakes are being saved by teammates, well Squawka also suggests that Moreno errors led directly to just two shots on goal all season.
In spite of the previous popular assertion that Moreno’s ills at the back come from being so attack-minded, there are some who believe that he isn’t actually all that good going forward either.
The fact he scored one goal last season would appear to back this up, but looking deeper, he made 57 key passes in 2015/16, comfortably more than all of his rivals (Cresswell – 36, Rose – 21, Azpilicueta – 17, Clyne – 24).
He is also credited with creating 61 chances, which again is far more than Cresswell (40), Rose (24), Azpilicueta (20) and Clyne (24).
In spite of all that creativity, he still only registered four assists, which was the same as Cresswell and just one more than Rose and Azpilicueta (Clyne didn’t register any) but then that could just be down to wasteful finishing from his teammates.
So that’s all the stats covered. If you’re not already convinced enough to go straight out and buy a mad toxic thunder shirt with ‘Alberto.M 18’ on the back, then read on.
It’s not that Moreno makes loads and loads of mistakes, it’s just that when he does, he makes damn sure it’s a memorable one. If you’re going to mis-time a tackle, you might as well do it while flying through the air like some sort of excitable dolphin, and if you’re going to get caught out of position, you might as well be so far up the pitch that you can read the small print on the opposition goalie’s gloves, and if you’re going to get another tattoo, it might as well be an unfathomably bizarre and massive one of a monkey holding a gun. It’s easy and perhaps even necessary to be harsher on a player like that.
There’s also a good chance that his persona off the pitch is rubbing people up the wrong way. His new hair-do is just appalling, and he even managed to convince poor Bobby Firmino to get the same one just so he wouldn’t look a tit on his own.
His impression of Chris Kamara’s “Unbelievable Jeff” catchphrase was also met with widespread ire and mockery last season, but do you not think that if Klopp or Coutinho has said it there’d likely be another flag on the Kop?
Then there’s his admission on the US Tour that he’s one of these ‘Pokémon GO’ types. The sort of people who have been walking into the sea, which I like to think of as natural selection.
If Moreno doesn’t walk into the sea in the next two weeks then he’ll probably have a place in the Liverpool team this season, much to the chagrin of many. However, at the risk of being a tad trite, it appears that Klopp rates him, so who are we to question that?
The manager said recently that his squad is now made up only of players he trusts (I presume he wasn’t including Mario Balotelli in that) and so however bad you might think Moreno is, Klopp doesn’t seem to agree. He could have sold him this summer and got a decent fee, he’s a good age and still has a fair amount of contract left, but Klopp just chose to merely try and find an understudy for him in the form of Ben Chilwell.
That move has of course not happened, and while there’s been murmurs of settling for James Milner as back-up, it’s probably best that the club does bring in another orthodox left back, especially now that Brad Smith has gone. Not necessarily to take Moreno’s place, but to give him some much needed competition. Having the threat of someone else to take your place if you don’t perform to high levels is vital for any player. How determined would you be to perform in your job every week if your alternative was Jose Enrique?
Like the rest of the squad, Moreno is receiving intensive training from Klopp and his staff, with the ultimate aim of educating and improving. If after this season there are still doubts then I’m sure Klopp will look to move him on and try another.
For now it looks like Moreno will still be there, running up and down our left side, possibly chasing Pokémon.
Those of you lovely people who subscribe to TAW Player will I’m sure have listened to the lads interviewing Klopp the other day in America, and will have noted how much importance he puts on the fans and their input. With that in mind, here’s the crux of the matter.
Question Moreno before the game, question him after it if you want to, but while he’s out on the pitch can we please limit our comments to “Go on Albie!”, “Well played son!” and “That’s a beautiful top knot you’ve got there, lad.” You might not believe it, you might still not rate him, you might just not like his face, but as Klopp says, it makes it a hell of a lot easier for the players if they’ve got the fans behind them rather than on their back.
Moreno will need to earn the trust of the fans back after Basel, but there have been signs in pre-season of him sticking to his position more and not racing away from the backline like a kid who’s been given too much sherbet dib-dab, and don’t forget it was him who played that beautiful ball over the top for Origi to run onto against Milan.
GOAL! Liverpool 1-0 AC Milan (Origi) Live on Sky Sports 1 HD or follow it here: https://t.co/rlm4KQeYxY https://t.co/dThWNRadMe
— Sky Sports PL (@SkySportsPL) July 31, 2016
In fact I’ve just had a great idea. Paint the ball like one of them Pokéballs, then paint a Pikachu in the opposition goal, and watch him bang them in left right and centre.
Then again if that doesn’t work then Moreno could just take some sage advice from Homer. “During the exam I’ll hide under some coats, and hope that somehow everything will work out.”
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Always a scapegoat for Liverpool fans. The one truly embarrassing thing about the fanbase. I really like Moreno and think he is solid. He’s as good as Jonas Hector and he’s better than Chillwell (so far). If he wasn’t a red he would be on the list of players that the twattersphere would be pining for.
But yeah that haircut…
He’s appalling.
Boss article that, sensible, balanced and backed up with facts. Also finally someody with the balls to point an accusing finger at Coutinho’s lack of cover in the EL final. Moreno has been hung out to dry and the hysteria towards him having a place in our team is ridiculous.
Klopp obviously sees something in him, and is right to persevere with him, hoping to improve his defensive abilities.
Well done and cheers.
good on the ball, composed, tenacious,atheletic..people seem to forget he is human…his role requires him to be high up at times and requires more risky passing etc so of course he might get caught out. the rest of the team has the responsibility of covering him when that happens so its down to coaching error if they are not prepared for it. unfair treament.
meanwhile clyne panics in tight spots and either go backwards or chuck the ball forward to nobody and is hailed as the bargain of the season. imo clyne and mignolet turns possession over to the team the most
If he’s that good Cou how come there aren’t loads of clubs in for him?Hes a scapegoat because of the ridiculous mistakes he makes at the back(God knows how Sakho escapes the same treatment for his nonsense),it’s well over the top but he’s got a lot to do to get many people to forgive his fuck up in the Basle.
He’s obviously someone that has ‘potential’,he needs to realise it next season,he’s not exactly a kid anymore.
Hopefully Matip can prove his fitness and create a solid partnership with Klavan, won’t have to worry about Sakho then! Just don’t understand how anyone in our defence is worth defending except for Clyne who does his first job of defending right then builds the rest of his game around it whilst Moreno builds his game the other way round with attacking and we will worry about getting back to defend later on in his career(!)
We’ve conceded 50+ goals the last 2 seasons with Migs in goal and Moreno left back. While they don’t make up the entire defence most supporters would agree that they are 2 of the weak links. We’ve brought in Karius to help solve that problem but so far, 10 days before the league starts, we still have no solution to the left back issue; either replacement or competition.
That’s a problem!
Can’t agree with your logic Michael – by the same train of thought Clyne is a bad RB whilst Danny Simpsons a worldie cos Leicester only conceded 36. If you want to throw stats and figures around, the article shows they actually support Moreno being a better than decent full back.
Have to agree with Cou here. Moreno is a great outlet, and provides the width the Klopp’s team needs if Coutinho is gonna drift inside. A helping hand from covering CMs or CBs (Sakho is actually pretty good in this regard) would make a lot of difference covering for his ‘brain farts’.
I’ve seen Moreno tackle guys from behind, inside our box that pose little to no danger.
I’ve seen him push guys inside our box that poses little to no danger.
No amount of centrebacks covering will help that stupidity.
Great article – I completely agree. He’s got a terrible case of Sakhoism – people have a terrible impression of his all round play because he is largely good, but when he makes a howler he makes sure it is absolutely A grade dreadful.
Case in point (as you say) the final. I do not remember people clamouring for his exit before Basel. In fact I think a straw poll of fans would have said centre mid/defensive mid was the biggest concern before summer or possibly a pacey winger then all of a sudden we were all convinced that left back was the first and only problem in the team. It baffles the mind.
Klopp has made his livelihood by taking talented but flawed players and honing them into stars. Whatever your impression of Moreno, he has the raw ingredients of a very good LB. I for one hope Klopp can work with him before Moreno is convicted of trial by Twitter.
It’s a worry when a player starts to regress. That’s what it’s feels like with Moreno. Fans notice other errors that stats won’t tell you. Two footed lunge at the end of the first leg against Dortmund. Should have been send off. First leg v Villarreal out of position for goal in the 90th minute. Second leg very lucky not to give away a penalty at 2-0 on the night. Clear foul in the box after a needless challenge. Going into the final he was the outfield player everyone worried about making basic mistakes and unfortunately he did.
My one hope is that he’s young for a full back so maybe he can eradicate the errors and become more solid but do we have time to wait??
I firmly believe in backing our players as much as possible as nobody performs badly on purpose and under intense pressure.
That said, I’m sure Albie is a nice lad but he drives me absolutely mental!
I Know you’re just trying to give the lad a break David, but unfortunately,
in many supporters eyes, he’s past the point of any redemption. And frankly in my opinion I hiss and spit at the TV and my neck goes into an involuntary spasm when he’s on the ball, or even more so when he fucks off down the wing not giving a flying fuck about the void he’s left behind which more times than not is being exploited while he’s gone on a 1 minute jolly, and then strolls back into position. At this point I would be on my knees butting the screen repeatedly, and crying Basil Fawlty-Esc, and then the kids come in asking me if I’m OK!
Just to take you up on one of your starts, if or should I say when, as you correctly detail, he is being exposed by the player in front of him, as you correctly identify, then surely he should defend the flank instead of marauding needlessly on a futile punt which normally only ever result in our left side being exploited by the opposition. We’ve said and heard this old Chestnut a million times,something about repeating the same mistakes over and over being adjudged as insanity ? And as in the curse of Homer; maybe everyone at the Ground could, on the count of 1…..2…….3…… Scream “DOH!!” at Moreno. See? I can’t even affectionately call him Albie !
even more so when he fucks off down the wing not giving a flying fuck about the void he’s left behind which more times than not is being exploited while he’s gone on a 1 minute jolly, and then strolls back into position.
I’m so glad you spotted this. Have you told Klopp yet? As he clearly is completely unaware this happens. I mean – how could he not see this and act on it after seeing Moreno plays 40-50 times last season?
But it’s not just that the guy forward of him on the left flank, e.g., Coutinho, isn’t tracking back to cover for him. It’s that Coutinho is cutting inside a lot, leaving the whole of the left flank for Moreno to cover. And it’s Moreno’s job to get down that flank and attack. The lad can’t be in two places at once. If he’s stranded forwards when we’re being counter-attacked, which is obviously going to happen sometimes, then it’s for the rest of the team to cover for him – including Emre Can, Milner, or whoever’s holding (Lucas – a job he does brilliantly) and the left-sided centre back. And anybody else. Moreno gets exposed because he’s often got too much ground to cover. If he stayed back all the time, we’d have even less width in attack than we have now. Against defensive dies, we’re playing too much through the middle as it is, and running into wall after wall. We need Moreno high and wide. In which case, we need the team organized to cover for him. Over on the right, Clyne simply has less to do, and is less exposed.
Our defence is rubbish it has been consistently getting worse through the decade hence us becoming a mid-table team! Just about 50 goals a season conceded for the last 3 years since Moreno, Sakho, Lovern and Mignolet arrived they have not improved us and they all have been inconsistent either with injury or form. Any good any of them do is undone by a poor tackle, poor decision or pass. Until we start cutting out these mistakes in defence we won’t go forward unless we are scoring 100 goals a season and even then we failed because of the defence. It’s not just about 1 player but Moreno’s problems at LB causes problems right across the back 4 with his poor positional player which pulls the other 3 out of position to cover.
Well said and sad that it needed saying. You’d swear world class full-backs were growing on trees and that when they fall to Earth their rushing into our loving embrace. The guy is a young Spaniard who prior to this was a one club man. Of course he can improve. Let’s be honest, he was the subject of a certain cultish adoration until the second-half stinker against Sevilla, but he was far from being the only one culpable on the night. Most of the ire was sparked by Carra’s impulsive tweet, and I think it says something that he deleted it afterwards. So we were all cheesed off and we had a handy scapegoat because one of our greatest ever servants decided to have a pop on social media. We need to get a grip. The lad has skills. Hopefully he will improve. He seems a decent sort. And haranguing him routinely will definitely NOT help his game. If in 12 months time it’s not working out, then it will be a different discussion, but until then some support would come in handy.
Vamos, Albie, show these fuckers up.
Carragher’s impulsive tweet? Think the tweet comes from the catalogue of errors Moreno has been making for the last 2 seasons!
Great writing! Time to give the lad our support!
https://streamable.com/bc9w
Count the number of goals on we have conceded from his side.
This piece is truly terrible. All you lot that have watched him week in week out have got it all wrong. The arrogance of it. Moreno wouldn’t know what being in position was if you tattoo’d him El Karma Sutra on the inside of his fucking eyelids.
I am not one to slam our players and I agree that we should give him nothing but support at the ground. I am also someone who tends to defend the use of stats. But not blindly.
The issue I have with Moreno is that, at this point in time, he does not think like a defender. This is reflected in his positional play and his diving into tackles. I remember in an early game of his, he being caught on the edge of the opposition when we were 1-0 up in injury time. That is unacceptable in my book.
The haring off up field on Saturday was another example. Yes, he might have been told to attack but someone who thinks like a defender doesn’t do that. And there are several goals last year that were not down to his errors directly but which he might have stopped had he actually being playing left back.
None of these issues are related to the lack of cover he is given by Coutinho.
Klopp obviously thinks he can work with him but at the moment – assuming Karius is what we hope – he is the weak link in our team by a mile. If we are not for buying, I’d move Clyne and play Hendo on the right where I think he could be amazing.
Spot on article
Even after Arsenal, no one is going to convince me that lad is sprinting out of defence of his own volition
He is undoubtedly following Jurgens orders
Had to shout down two fellas in the bar after 15 minutes of the Arsenal match on Sunday for the negativity. Ridiculous!!
Part of the reason we haven’t won as much in the past few years is because the 12th man has been performing very poorly. On Albert he supposedly gave a way a penalty against Arsenal. He got his studs to the ball before making any contact with the player so that I’m my opinion says that ref was wrong. Other players at the club past and present would get the fans arguing on their behalf. Perhaps significant that they blame him not fight for him. I don’t mind people arguing the pros and cons of players abilities before or after the game and have also said whilst they are in the red shirt get behind them. God knows there have been players I’d had given a lift to, to see them somewhere else but you have to support them on the pitch whist they are one of ours.