SHALL we just talk about Lucas Leiva? Or just about Daniel Sturridge? Or do we need to address the big holes?
For big holes there were. Too many of them too often again. Liverpool are trying to do clever things — Emre Can as a split defender midfielder. Philippe Coutinho as a split midfielder forward. And when that goes well, which it does most of the time, Liverpool look a competent side, not a good one, not yet, but competent. But when it doesn’t, well, the aforementioned big holes.
The current shape is trying to mitigate all sorts but, the reason why football is still 11 people and the pitch is still the same size, whatever you do in zone X will kick on into zone Y. It’s good to be able to say this when Liverpool win, the worry is that the current shape leads to asking too much of footballers tactically across 90 minutes.
They have constant decisions to make about who goes where and when. They get the vast majority of those decisions correct, we mostly don’t remember the ones they get correct. We mostly remember the tiny minority they get wrong.
Liverpool closed down both the ball and space really well today. Apart from when they didn’t. And as soon as they don’t it all looks too easy. Far too easy. At which point other footballers look edgy and poorer than they are. The pitch was too big. Liverpool aren’t compact enough.
Liverpool were vastly superior to Aston Villa and they should always have won this game. But they might not have. They really might not have. It needed to be a little easier than it was.
Big holes done? OK then. Maybe not enough for some of you but you know what, good performances and winning needs some words too and so…
Lucas Leiva was magnificent today. Absolutely magnificent. He worked the frankly terrifying Traore out in five minutes. He thought his way through the football match brilliantly, clearly the smartest participant among any of the 22 on the pitch at any given moment. His passing was slightly off in patches but other than that it was a marvellous centre midfield performance, shuttling around the place. He’s a Liverpool player in the best possible sense. The manager kept him in cotton wool midweek and he was right to do so.
Daniel Sturridge is a Liverpool player in the best possible sense too. He’s always just about to score. Just about to find an angle and put the ball in the back of the net. Both his goals were lovely in different ways, one powered and one placed. He is constantly alive even when clearly not fully fit. He will also need the cotton wool treatment for the next few weeks.
Nothing is fixed here for Liverpool. It was good to see the attitude of score one more goal but nothing is fixed. Fixing things will take time. It always does. It’s a curiosity of this league season Liverpool are only five off the pace. They don’t deserve to be. They really don’t. But they do deserve three points today. Keep doing that and things will be fixed. But keep leaving big holes and things won’t.
That’s the problem with tightrope walking. And is it worth it? Are the current risks gambles worth taking? Are they helping enough?
Lucas Leiva is helping. Daniel Sturridge is helping. Danny Ings is helping. Albie Moreno is helping. Let’s help them that bit more. Help Liverpool win games and get on a run. Assess things. Resolve all situations. Even if it means travelling long distances.
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Pic: David Rawcliffe-Propaganda Photo
Daniel Sturridge is the Clint Eastwood of football. So deadly.
Lucas. Like watching a master artist paint a beautiful picture. So intelligent, composed, a joy to watch.
Sakho talked about being a “soldier” recently. He might be but today Lucas was a one man army. Given the way he hws escaped from Rodgers’ freezer more than most and was only a Henderson injury from leaving, his attitude is fantastic. Today reminded me of his performance at the Bernabeu leading the ‘B’ team to a face saving display. Well done to him, a proper Liverpool player and top bloke. As for the game it seemed to typify what we can do well (usually), attack and what we definitely can’t do regularly, defend.
Thanks neilfor great early footage and sanity
The sense of disappointment among Liverpool fans (on other sites) at this win – and the fact that Rodgers won’t get sacked this week because of it – is palpable. Stuff ’em.
Well done lads!
Yes, Jase, congrats – you get the cheerleader of the week award
.
You didn’t happen to catch Brendan’s ‘I’m a better manager now than I was in 2012’
or other pearls of wisdom as he clings onto a job he should have been relieved of after the Stoke humiliation.
There are plenty on here – not just other sites – who are passionate for the club to succeed and know their football.
That’s why we’ve had enough of a chancer learning on the job at our expense and want someone with the profile commensurate with the standing – albeit fading – we still have in world football.
To be fair I agree with Jase, there seem to be far too many willing for us to lose or draw so that Brendan is closer to going. Today was by no means perfect but we got the win and should be happy. He’ll be given no credit of course because people are decided that he should go but I’ve seen numerous calls for him to revert to the we’ll score more than you approach and today he’s done just that and come up trumps. Hopefully people can stop whinging for a few days. Great to see Studge smash it again.
Too many reminders of previous seasons for me. Expensive misfits played until they’re injured and hey presto! an upturn in form. It’s as though since 13/14 (when he and we were great) he’s only able to find his best team by chance: when his players are injured and there’s always the feeling that he’ll revert to type once they’re fit again.
hi,
I have to say that to want your team to lose to remove a manager is pretty daft. The concept of one game saves or loses a managers job is also pretty illogical. Said before, don’t care who manages the side within reason but I do care if Liverpool FC win – if you don’t want that, well that’s pretty strange.
Thought the crowd was very supportive of the team yesterday.
As a matter of interest, Pierre, did you used to post on TTWR?
Sturridge needs a proper song!
Thinks its time the Luis Garcia one is recycled so:
Oh Daniel Sturridge
Too good for the bridge
Too good for city
Cos hes a red
He takes his chances
And then he dances
Oh please dont take our Sturridge away.
I like the song! I’d just change the last line from Sturridge to Danny.
Oh Daniel Sturridge,
Too,good for Chelsea, too good for City,
Cos he’s a red,
He scores his chances and then he dances,
Oh please don’t take our Daniel away……
Neil mate your writing recently is so fucking in the zone. Your choice of opening angle to a match review has been fantastic reading lately. Then great further analysis too. Loving it mate, keep it up. You probably typed that up in a Turkish bar tonight as well. Swine.
Oh please! Get a room.
First win at home against Villa since Hodgson which is funny because I thought if we didn’t get a bit of positive momentum going we’d be in for our first derby loss since Hodgson also. No longer thinking we’re a week out from a chastising pasting from that lot is an altogether healthier place to be. The goals and hope Sturridge carries with him… What a shit 12 months we’ve had without him.
It’s easy to rip someone after a terrible performance like last week but it was good to see Milner have a goal and assist in him from his favoured position. I believe he played there for Villa and they seemed to really love him. I still think he’s better Dirk Kuyting up the right than he is as a like for like Gerrard replacement though. I reckon him and Clyne would be good together (I remember a couple of sharp 1-2s between them against Bournemouth) and I think Clyne needs that link up to be more comfortable going forward which we know he can be from his goal against us first game of last season.
after being treated to not-so-Liverpool like performance this season, this is the first match of this season’s BR~Liverpool like performance.
a lot is excitement (team work and commitment, attacking), a bit of stress/worries (defending, Sakho, Can,), a bit if relief (final score), a bit of disapointment (not clean sheet, from.4 Villa shots), But overall gread pride and happiness (team work, win, Sturridge is back, Lucas thst we know and.love is back, Moreno is back, Clyne, Milner, and Ings are with us!!!)
Well done. Really really pleased. Well done.team, well done BR. well done FSG (whats wrong. let us share the love)
I’ve always been one of Lucas’ harshest critics, but the man was immense today. He was like wild dog shite…here, there, everywhere.
Sturridge’s finishes were fantastic, although still not fully fit I thought he looked a menace in the second half.
I had a good view of their goals, thought Sakho could’ve done better for both. The first especially, I was on line with their cross across the box and he just seemed to go asleep for a split second, allowing Gestede a run in. Their second, I still thought he got caught flat-footed from their cross in. Maybe criticising his role in their second is harsh on my end, it was a good cross and a brilliant jump and header from Gestede. Maybe my vantage point had me looking at it differently to what other people might have done, I’ll definitely be watching out for it on MOTD.
actually i agree w u. Sakho could have done better in both goals conceeded.
he usually has 5 min down time every match, but for villa match, his down time coincided w both goals?
imagine if it were our injured defender #6? i was thinking during the game that BR and coaches have seen something in Lovran that many of us fail to? (besides the £20m price tag)
Goals! Remember those things. That was fun!
Mate how fucking good are goals? He makes it look easy. That kind of talent is hard to come by and reminds you that you should probably give the manager a bit of slack. Uncoachable
his finishing somewhat reminds me of Fowler’s. EFFORTLESS FINISHING. so natural.
Good result. Aston Villa are poor and the flaws are still there but the pluses that were missing are starting to reappear, none more so than Sturridge. I fret about the expectation on his shoulders but fortunately he evidently has no such worry. Now if he can just stay fit….
Interesting times ahead for all at LFC not least for Rodgers for whom the inevitable has been delayed indefinitely it would appear.
Hoping they can continue to score goals and improve defence.
But as an aside, also hoping that the comments in the press conference about “hysteria” aren’t signs that every time there’s a turn of fortune we’ll hear the “that’ll be the new defensive coach” comments.
Firstly, because it seems some of the fans – obviously can’t speak for more than that – find it arrogant and secondly (perhaps in some ways more importantly) it always seems to backfire soon after.
Not arrogant so much, but bumptious. I mean, a 3-2 win over Villa isn’t the time to come out fighting now, is it?
It’s completely ludicrous from Rodgers as usual. He’s just spent another £90m in the summer while Villa spent half of that, he has a squad earning over double what Villa players do, they’ve been fighting relegation more often than not in the last few years and they’ve just sold their best two players, one of them to us…..yet Rodgers reckons a 1 goal win at home over them is the time to moan about hysteria and a group of people wanting him out?
Arguing that we’ve lost less than Chelsea was foolish but I suspect he knows that. Only talking about this season is him trying to set a narrative, i.e. last season doesnt count towards any evaluation of the job he is doing. Unfortunately the fella can’t help himself. He can’t wait to open his mouth to the press. It used to be after a series of results, now it seems to only take one against an awful team at home.
We all know where this is going. He can’t help but win matches like this given the financial disparity in play but ultimately because of him we’ll draw or lose too many to get near top 4 while taking our usual beatings by Chelsea, United and City. This means after every few losses against the big boys and draws against the rubbish there’ll be another change in formation and style coinciding (but not causing) a run of a few wins to keep us top 8, allowing him to fool the fools into thinking we’re in top 4 contention. Remember every month last season people were saying “we’re only 7 points off 4th!?” This will avoid full on Hodgson level crisis so saving his job til summer. Bottom line is though that if he sees 15/16 out, nae if he isn’t sacked soon, 15/16 will still be a wasted season.
In the weeks leading up to his sack, Hodgson beat Villa 3-0 and Bolton 2-1. Yesterday felt similar – we’ve won but nobody really believes it means anything or it will lead us somewhere.
On the playing side yesterday, agree with most of what has been said. Wasnt rocket science to analyse. We have vastly better players than they do and won the game because of that. One observation I’d point out (and Im glad Gibbo did too) though is that Sturridge, as good as he is and as much as I love him, is remarkably greedy at times, especially when he hasn’t scored. He would nit pass to Ings at all. It was the same with him not passing to Benteke against Norwich. Pass the fucking ball to someone in a better position Daniel. You’ll be a better player and us a better team for it.
Most insightful comment on here.
Hysteria indeed.
Instead of deflecting criticism by claiming ‘outsiders’ wanting him sacked, he should be addressing how, after 4 years, he still hasn’t a fucking clue how to set up a defence.
Quite. A risible performance. I can quite understand that me might feel hurt but the last thing he should do is show it.
Shorter “Michael”:
I fucking hate it when Liverpool win under Rodgers.
We know, Chris. We know.
Remember when you said you were fucking off for good? What happened to that?
He’s changed his name at least 4 times the daft tit.
Manc troll – they’re all over twitter aswell – same when rafa was here.
Nothing much wrong with what he has written, in fact Gareth Roberts most recent article echoes much of this. Don’t recall you giving MrRoberts the same response…
Lucas had to sort Traore out as Moreno didn’t. Great to see Sturridge back in the goals, could’ve been more goals but for two great saves from Verne Troyer’s big brother Guzan.
Shouldn’t Sir Minge -a -lot be catching the cross that led to their first goal?
Great to get a win though.
Sturridge, Sanchez, Kane and carpet head all scored in wins today .Normal service being resumed?
For Villa’s 1st goal, the player of ours who gets comprehensively “owned” is Emre Can.
If you’re on twitter, go to my TL, I’ve posted stills and short videos (@GrkStav).
For those who want a 2nd viewing (highlight, first half, second half), please visit:
http://www.fullmatchesandshows.com/2015/09/26/liverpool-vs-aston-villa-highlights-full-match/
Crowd were better as well.
One maybe negative point. I think Skirtel needs a rest. We need to try somone else. He has always been in defence, and we leak pure goals. He never organizes, speaks or anything.
Sorry for negativity, just my opinion
YnWa
All I wanted yesterday was a win. I probably would have been full of criticism had we not. But we did. No complaints #eatacake.
Ha ha ha! Best I could find in ours was a big cookie. Won’t make that mistake again…
Thought Sturridge was only half way March fit today. Can’t wait until he gets back to full fitness. Big question is Studge with Benteke or Ings – nice problem to have.
Lucas = Immense.
Hmmm …goals. Thats more like it.
Be interesting to see if this time round goals = holes, but all the same, I think I’d take that for the goals.