Liverpool FC Team Talk/Gossip/Rumours Thread 2014 - Mod Warning in OP, 10/12

Liam O wrote: »

The scope for Arsenal and United to sort themselves out is far more than that of Liverpool. Hamming on about Sturridge all season when Falcao, Rafael, Shaw and now Di Maria spending time on the sidelines amongst many squad players for United and Ozil, Koscielny, Giroud, Walcott and Debuchy missing for Arsenal amongst others is a bit clutching at straws. Arsenal have now sorted out their defense purely from getting Koscielny back and I hate to think how their attack could flourish with Ozil back in the fold feeding Sanchez. United's attack is getting a bit better and the defence has been solid for over a month now. Sturridge could make a big difference but enough to counteract the improvement of these 2 teams? I don't think so. Then there's still Southampton who could easily turn over United at home on Monday.

It is all to play for but I think Liverpool have both played the worst by far out of all these teams and have the least scope for improvement as the personnel currently stands.

Falcao is the only player utd are missing. Now, that is a perfect example of how Utd can fail or blow us out of the water. Utd need as many players as we do if not more!! They have the money but who's to say they won't end up with a Lovern?

The missing Arsenal players are as hit and miss as our own. Arseanl have simliar problems to ourselves and none of the so called missing players will solve that problem. Arsenal have far too many miss firing 'play makers' and not enough steal.

IMO The 3 point gap is not too far from the truth. Take Sanchez out of this Arsenal team and that 3 point gap disappears. Add Sturridge in from the start and we're level. That was the point in mentioning Sturridge... small margins.

noodler wrote: »

I think we have to move away from relying on Sturridge.

I am not syaing cutting him loose or anything like that - just that it would seem prudent to make other goalscoring arrangements rather than rely on him being fit for long spells.

The team needs to be built around Sterling, I know that sounds mad building a team around a 19 year old but I believe he is that good and will only get better. The teams needs to cater to his strengths.

One of the issues I've had this season is that our defences of the team have been a bit deluded. Arsenal are missing a heap of influential players and are plainly a stronger squad - Sanchez is the man we needed, and we all know it - but, even disregarding them, I want to focus on United:

United have a single issue with their team: defence. It's identifiable, and while it's not necessarily easily solved, it's far less complex than our myriad issues around creativity, midfield, goal conversion and - also - defence.

I won't use a Rodgers-esque line of "it's easy to park two buses" or what have you, but it's quite simply the case that United's single big issue is far more easily resolved than our case, where we have the same issue at heart (defence) and also a whole host of others too.

I honestly think the point gap has served, for far too long, as a bit of a shield to criticism - at the start of the season some deluded themselves with "comparable fixtures", which was a dreadful metric - then it moved to "points off 4th place" - which is still quite misleading, when you consider that we're 5 points off 4th place and Arsenal aren't even inside the top 4. In my opinion, as it was the last time I posted a few weeks back, Arsenal and United are our competition for the top 4: I think Southampton will fall back slightly - they won't suddenly become crap - but they're fall back slightly, which means we have to keep pace with them, gazzump Arsenal and gain seven points over Southampton.

However, we're closing in on 40% of the season gone, and we have an absolute mountain to climb, and I just think some of this talk about us being on a par with United and Arsenal currently is way wide of the mark.

In saying all of that, it's not completely insurmountable, and I can't emphasise enough how fortunate we've been that so many other teams started with flat feet.

Liam O wrote: »

Put Koscielny in that Arsenal team for the last few months and that gap is 8 or 9 points imo. That's before you add Ozil and Walcott who are better than any players Liverpool have. They are missing cover in defense and a top DM from being at City or Chelsea levels squad wise.

United have been missing Evans, Jones and Rojo for large parts of the season in CB. Still the defensive record is OK taking out one freak result against Leicester. Now Carrick is back and Blind and Di Maria are gone. The injuries haven't let up. When/if they do after Christmas it'll be a different beast. Already in the last 2 games it looks better even with a late surge from Stoke the other day.

I admittedly have only seen highlights from a lot of Liverpool games this season but it looks like they are liable to make a mistake on a lot of opposition attacks. I had one eye on the second half the other day and throughout that time Leicester had plenty of chances. From what I've seen from Arsenal and United especially they control large portions of the game and have lapses in concentration. Liverpool just don't seem to have the players through the middle to do this with large gaps and poor ball retention. That's a lot more difficult to fix than the problems Arsenal and United have.

You're watching different Utd/Arsenal games to me.

Poor players. As it stands, We should not fear them what so ever. IF we can get our house in order we finish above that Utd team.

As for Arsenal, yes Koscielny is a loss as is Walcott but they can only play so many attacking players.

Ozil has been useless since he signed, that's akin to us going on about Lovern or Sakho coming in and shoring up our defence.

Arsenal have a better squad. No question there,however, with all their other problems they are within reach.

Gowlasauras Rex wrote: »

A very different Liverpool finished above a very different man utd. If you can't see that then you haven't been paying attention the last 2 years.

Future tense! finished was a typo

Gowlasauras Rex wrote: »

Haha irony alright.

My point was that utd have that little bit more with players that can get a winning strike or save than can win a match.

Falcao is coming back now so probably premature for me to include him but he has the history to be included.

Fellaini is playing far from average.

I just think utd have that extra level that Liverpool don't. Hardly anything mad about that.

You have better misfiring strikers, an average midfield and a defence worse than ours, that takes some doing!

Anyway, we sort our own house and we finish above utd. Good luck

That assessment of the United team is veering into Crerrand territory.