Luis Suarez has posted a photo of the youngsters from Nacional who will be training at the Academy and will be there for a few weeks as Liverpool look to seek out new talent.
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Click here for Photo
The youngsters have all been hand picked by the Liverpool Scouts to train at Melwood as communication between Nacional and Liverpool are still strong.
Monday, 23 April 2012
Sunday, 22 April 2012
Hodgson Haunts Anfield
A disappointing game see the Reds lose 1-0 against West Bromich Albion as Hodgson's returns to Anfield to lead the Albion into their first win at Anfield in a long long time!
A return for Reina after his 3 match ban welcomes him to a home as the Kops number one stopper. Kenny has kept Gerrard out of this game so this game sees Henderson filling in for the skipper. Starting XI start for Maxi and Kuyt while the usual back four and front two stay the same.
Liverpool Line-up: Reina, Johnson, Skrtel, Agger, Enrique,Kuyt Henderson, Spearing, Rodriguez, Carroll, Suarez.
West Brom Line-up: Foster, Jones, McAuley, Olsson, Ridgewell, Brunt, Dorrans, Mulumbu, Thomas, Odemwingie.
Hodgson returns after a poor start to the season last year as Manager and he faces up against his replacement.
From the beginning a brilliant bright start from Liverpool, but a lack of finishing was, more to the point, non-existent.
Brilliant few chances from Carroll, Henderson catching the crossbar (after winning Bet188's crossbar challenge I'm not surprised), Suarez tearing through the defence but unable to get the final touch. Shots from Spearing and Henderson throughout the game, lovely set-ups from Johnson and Kuyt but still unable to capitalise.
Towards the end of the match, desperation fell over Anfield's Army as long balls were just being chucked into the area. Frustration could be seen in all the Liverpool players as they become more aggressive towards the WBA players than the game.
West Brom Albion deserve a lot of credit for disrupting the offence of Liverpool, while the fault falls for Johnson as a poor clearance drops to Odemwingie who calmly gained control to pop the ball passed Reina who was off balance. Olsson kept on top of Suarez, and did well but Suarez flared up with many missed call from the referee.
Not too impressve from Liverpool as the ball just would not get in the back of the net even with Ben Foster spilling the ball every single time he made a save. The counter attacks were slow as they spent too much time trying to wait for the rest of the team for support. The midfielders were not moving ahead fast enough to support the strike force, give West Brom plenty of time to fall back and regroup and hold their defence line.
Suarez did well to get passed them but not enough communication between the players left the team unable to get their passes down dropping their passing success rate by approx. 15% within the last 15mins.
Finishing.
Liverpool's problem. A problem that is quite essential to winning a game wouldn't you say? Today's game saw exactly how Liverpool play in the final third as they take far too much time being hesitant and nervous with the ball. The players are getting some brilliant balls in, but they player in the box are too easily manipulated by oppositions defence. Carroll's not moving about to lose his player to gain an advantage, as much as he can hold his ground, he isn't so capable against two.
Suarez has had a shot with every single part of his body but not one single shot has hit the net.
West Brom's defence were tight and able to deal with a lot of the attacks as Liverpool were unable to gain cohesive momentum of attack. Crosses from Kuyt proved useful at many times but it really isn't the role he shows his full potential.
With the Skipper out, Kuyt should have been played in the centre playing support role to Suarez and Carroll. His ability to run through the pitch with great speed makes him ideal for attacking and providing down the centre. Henderson played well however having him in the centre does not suit how he has developed in the team. Thus a switch between Kuyt and Henderson would have been more advantageous.
Maxi's lack of games has him on unfamiliar grounds as he wasn't at his best but still showed strength when attacking and providing for the Uruguayan.
(ever noticed Maxi and Tevez has that bottom lip thing going on? :-p)
Suarez was able to start some great runs in some very tight spots but again the finish was never around. Time and time again, the players are too muddled to know what is going on in the final third.
Bellamy soon came on for Kuyt, instead of changing tactics, he simply replaced the player. Wise in a sense but also a folly of a plan. Bellamy did well to make plenty of crosses but with a worn out centre attack, it was hard to see anyone getting a touch of the ball.
Fouls began to creep in with Skrtel getting frustrated with Long.
At the moment Liverpool need to focus on keeping their heads up and moving forward, trying to attack with who they have and move about and create some space for themselves.
Hodgson's style has always been a defensive play, having all four defenders as far back as they can afford to be; The midfielder's fall back into defensive position rather than attacking the player with the ball keeping a solid defensive structure which worked well against Liverpool as they were far too slow with the counter attacks and general movement.
So really Liverpool needed more from Spearing and Henderson attacking and moving forward, pressing the defence to force them out of position, dragging them across to the sides and opening up some space in the centre for Carroll and Suarez. Instead, Suarez has had to do it all himself a lot of the time.
The crossings, as well placed as they were, they were far too slow allowing the defence to tighten back up.
Player missed was definitely Gerrard, without him in the centre giving accurate through-balls for Suarez and Kuyt, this became a difficult game. Spearing spoke recently of stepping up his game and he has done well in this game but still needs to focus his shots more as he is blasting them far over the bar each time but doing well.
Henderson, individually has ability but not in a team, too many times has he played a terrible pass into a player who was surrounded.
Disappointing finish for the Reds but a brilliant performance, as Kenny has been saying, it is a team in the making and the frame work can be seen, the structure is coming together but the finishing touches are still needed.
Next game Liverpool travel to Carrow Road to try and take back a win after a draw at Anfield earlier in the season. With this loss, a win is a necessity if they wish to stay in the top half of the table.
Liverpool come to an end of a season with an extremely difficult run of matches.
Fulham (H), Chelsea (FA Cup Final), Chelsea (PL) (H), Swansea (A).
Fulham have been in form with a lot of goals from Dempsey while the final for the FA Cup could see Liverpool playing European football despite their current position. Chelsea are in form after a win against the Mighty Spanish Barcelona and a final game against Swansea who have only lost to 3 teams at home.
With the Form the Red's are in, potential to a late outbreak of beauty that was seen last season is possible but a lot of work needs to be done.
A return for Reina after his 3 match ban welcomes him to a home as the Kops number one stopper. Kenny has kept Gerrard out of this game so this game sees Henderson filling in for the skipper. Starting XI start for Maxi and Kuyt while the usual back four and front two stay the same.
Liverpool Line-up: Reina, Johnson, Skrtel, Agger, Enrique,Kuyt Henderson, Spearing, Rodriguez, Carroll, Suarez.
West Brom Line-up: Foster, Jones, McAuley, Olsson, Ridgewell, Brunt, Dorrans, Mulumbu, Thomas, Odemwingie.
Hodgson returns after a poor start to the season last year as Manager and he faces up against his replacement.
From the beginning a brilliant bright start from Liverpool, but a lack of finishing was, more to the point, non-existent.
Brilliant few chances from Carroll, Henderson catching the crossbar (after winning Bet188's crossbar challenge I'm not surprised), Suarez tearing through the defence but unable to get the final touch. Shots from Spearing and Henderson throughout the game, lovely set-ups from Johnson and Kuyt but still unable to capitalise.
Towards the end of the match, desperation fell over Anfield's Army as long balls were just being chucked into the area. Frustration could be seen in all the Liverpool players as they become more aggressive towards the WBA players than the game.
West Brom Albion deserve a lot of credit for disrupting the offence of Liverpool, while the fault falls for Johnson as a poor clearance drops to Odemwingie who calmly gained control to pop the ball passed Reina who was off balance. Olsson kept on top of Suarez, and did well but Suarez flared up with many missed call from the referee.
Not too impressve from Liverpool as the ball just would not get in the back of the net even with Ben Foster spilling the ball every single time he made a save. The counter attacks were slow as they spent too much time trying to wait for the rest of the team for support. The midfielders were not moving ahead fast enough to support the strike force, give West Brom plenty of time to fall back and regroup and hold their defence line.
Suarez did well to get passed them but not enough communication between the players left the team unable to get their passes down dropping their passing success rate by approx. 15% within the last 15mins.
Finishing.
Liverpool's problem. A problem that is quite essential to winning a game wouldn't you say? Today's game saw exactly how Liverpool play in the final third as they take far too much time being hesitant and nervous with the ball. The players are getting some brilliant balls in, but they player in the box are too easily manipulated by oppositions defence. Carroll's not moving about to lose his player to gain an advantage, as much as he can hold his ground, he isn't so capable against two.
Suarez has had a shot with every single part of his body but not one single shot has hit the net.
West Brom's defence were tight and able to deal with a lot of the attacks as Liverpool were unable to gain cohesive momentum of attack. Crosses from Kuyt proved useful at many times but it really isn't the role he shows his full potential.
With the Skipper out, Kuyt should have been played in the centre playing support role to Suarez and Carroll. His ability to run through the pitch with great speed makes him ideal for attacking and providing down the centre. Henderson played well however having him in the centre does not suit how he has developed in the team. Thus a switch between Kuyt and Henderson would have been more advantageous.
Maxi's lack of games has him on unfamiliar grounds as he wasn't at his best but still showed strength when attacking and providing for the Uruguayan.
(ever noticed Maxi and Tevez has that bottom lip thing going on? :-p)
Suarez was able to start some great runs in some very tight spots but again the finish was never around. Time and time again, the players are too muddled to know what is going on in the final third.
Bellamy soon came on for Kuyt, instead of changing tactics, he simply replaced the player. Wise in a sense but also a folly of a plan. Bellamy did well to make plenty of crosses but with a worn out centre attack, it was hard to see anyone getting a touch of the ball.
Fouls began to creep in with Skrtel getting frustrated with Long.
At the moment Liverpool need to focus on keeping their heads up and moving forward, trying to attack with who they have and move about and create some space for themselves.
Hodgson's style has always been a defensive play, having all four defenders as far back as they can afford to be; The midfielder's fall back into defensive position rather than attacking the player with the ball keeping a solid defensive structure which worked well against Liverpool as they were far too slow with the counter attacks and general movement.
So really Liverpool needed more from Spearing and Henderson attacking and moving forward, pressing the defence to force them out of position, dragging them across to the sides and opening up some space in the centre for Carroll and Suarez. Instead, Suarez has had to do it all himself a lot of the time.
The crossings, as well placed as they were, they were far too slow allowing the defence to tighten back up.
Player missed was definitely Gerrard, without him in the centre giving accurate through-balls for Suarez and Kuyt, this became a difficult game. Spearing spoke recently of stepping up his game and he has done well in this game but still needs to focus his shots more as he is blasting them far over the bar each time but doing well.
Henderson, individually has ability but not in a team, too many times has he played a terrible pass into a player who was surrounded.
Disappointing finish for the Reds but a brilliant performance, as Kenny has been saying, it is a team in the making and the frame work can be seen, the structure is coming together but the finishing touches are still needed.
Next game Liverpool travel to Carrow Road to try and take back a win after a draw at Anfield earlier in the season. With this loss, a win is a necessity if they wish to stay in the top half of the table.
Liverpool come to an end of a season with an extremely difficult run of matches.
Fulham (H), Chelsea (FA Cup Final), Chelsea (PL) (H), Swansea (A).
Fulham have been in form with a lot of goals from Dempsey while the final for the FA Cup could see Liverpool playing European football despite their current position. Chelsea are in form after a win against the Mighty Spanish Barcelona and a final game against Swansea who have only lost to 3 teams at home.
With the Form the Red's are in, potential to a late outbreak of beauty that was seen last season is possible but a lot of work needs to be done.
Monday, 16 April 2012
Third Trip To Trophy Victory?
First of all, apologies for the lack of blogging, I am currently in the middle of moving homes and things have been difficult.
Well I seem to have missed out quite a bit! Since the last blog a lot has happened!
Maxi Rodriguez was back on the pitch only to be overshadowed by Andy Carroll's goal.
Defeating Everton 2-1 at Wembley, third time in a season for the first time ever.
Rumours of Kuyts departure grows ever more as he loses first team play.
Cruyff is NOT coming to Liverpool.
And Hillsborough 96 anniversary
After a tight 3-2 win over Blackburn, where we saw Doni sent off, Jones was asked to come on only to have saved a penalty but also giving one away.
Maxi opened the game with 2 games, simple in its style but nontheless important. This is why Maxi needs to be in the first 11.
Maxi's ability to pick out loose balls as well as find gaps in the defence has been brilliant. His ability also to lose his marker and get himself into space has shown his strengths but Dalglish is yet to have him feature properly.
If he isn't featured in the starting XI on May 5th, I can see the game being a lot more difficult to win as I believe him to be that much of a game changer.
Nevertheless the team showed their worth and came back from a goal down after Jelavic was able to score from a miscommunication between Jamie Carragher and Daniel Agger. Technically the goal was offside and should not have counted but in the end the Reds were able to fight back.
A mistake from Distin saw Suarez chase down a short back pass that allowed Suarez to score an equaliser.
Andy Carroll played his best game yet, moving much better, applying much more pressure on the defence and showing his own footwork. However there is still a lot of work that needs doing. Ian Rush was part of the crowd that saw Carroll miss 2 simple chances that he should have scored but narrowly missed. Towards the end Carroll was able to nod back a beautifully crossed ball from Bellamy with just 10 minutes left in the game.
Brad Jones played a smooth game where he was not really challenged apart from the defensive mistake and a few corners but even in those instances he made himself known. A brilliant goalkeeper in the making and no less Pepe Reina was happy to open his arms to him after the game.
Reina will retake the reigns as he will most likely be in for the final at Wembley.
But what of the team.
As I've mentioned, Kenny has been building and has admitted the team right now is still a team in the making and the Semi's has shown just what the future holds for this team.
Henderson played a much better game, Spearing played well and Downing has been providing a lot of crosses that gave Everton a lot of work to do.
However Everton were not weak. Besides his slip Distin had been solid. Baines showed his threatening pace and offensive ability putting balls into the Reds box and offering chances.
Fellani was also given too much space and time, chances could have destroyed Liverpool's chances but Agger and Skrtel were still able to deflect any chances of that happening.
Games Ahead?
Liverpool next play host to West Brom who have won 2 of the last 6 in the Premier League. Liverpool's league form has not been great and with Everton ahead by a mere point, it is most likely Dalglish would not let this game be a loss.
Although focus should be on the finals, PL positioning is still important and with a run of losses to teams Liverpool should be winning, it is most likely, West Brom will be desperate to keep themselves out of relegation. Although they are currently 13 points away from relegation, with all the bottom teams playing well, particularly seeing Wigan win against Manchester United, West Brom are still in a difficult position.
Liverpool have essentially lost their chances of a top 4/5 finish but a respectable position is still expected, namely being above Everton.
What's with Cruyff?
Johan Cruyff was one of the Dutch league giants who, like the current no. 7 Luis Suarez, played for Ajax and one of the few who have scored 100 goals for the club.
Cruyff was famous for a skill that would soon after his time be named after him.
The Cruyff turn, one which was demonstrated by Doni in his Debut game, feints one direction, and plays the ball to the players other foot to confuse and pass a defending player.
There were talks of the legend coming to Liverpool but he has spoken out against these claims. Cruyff once worked for Manchester United, attempting to get his son into the team, but his son was not on the same level of his father.
But the question is who? Who would you have to take over Commoli's position?
15th April saw the anniversary of the Hillsborough 96. Respect from all over the world for the loss of the Liverpool fans who took their last trip to watch Liverpool play.
YNWA - JUSTICE 96 - YNWA
Saturday, 7 April 2012
Liverpool and Villa End their losing streak with 1-1...
Not quite what they were expecting but Liverpool finally end their losing streak with a draw against a very well disciplined defence from Villa.
The Line-Up
Doni starts for his debut in goal, the Brazilian should show some real ability and a good one to test against Villa as Mcleish sets up Heskey to return to Anfield and the new appointed captain with Petrov's absence, Gabby Agbonlahor.
In the back with Kelly and Johnson still out, Flanagan continues his first team appearance for the club. Liverpool sees the return of Daniel Agger on the bench with Carragher and Skrtel in the Centre of defence and the ever so offensive Enrique on the left.
Midfield we have Shelvey, Henderson, Gerrard and Downing. Shelvey is given another chance to play hopefully to show his worth while Henderson... well we'll see whether he's figured out what he's doing.
Curious to see as Maxi is again, yet to be used with his experience and ability to play well with Kuyt and Gerrard is brushed aside.
Up front we had the ever threatening Suarez and the return on Kuyt. Rumours of Kuyt have appeared as it seems he has been looking at his stay at Anfield as a big doubt since the arrival of Carroll, Suarez, Adam and Henderson, he hasn't really ahd the chance to play as often even though he was such a central piece of Anfield's pick-up last season.
The frustration is understandable since his ability to play great football is always seen but not always used this season.
The Game!
What can we possibly say? A start that should have been a great run of goals from Liverpool but Villa were not about to let anything go without a fight. Kuyt was the first to really have a chance but his 5 yard shot saw him blast it over the roof.
After a shot on target saw Doni work to slap away the ball, Bannan was the one to collect and a lay-off to Herd sees him take a brilliantly struck shot that curved away from Doni. A brilliant shot and there really wasn't anything Doni could do, though the question stands as to why Herd was able to get into so much space?
Following there were plenty to shout about as Villa continued their assault but Liverpool were reacting and countering extremely well, until the final third where the problem was a lot more apparent than their previous games.
A few penalty calls not given, and a terrible run of calls from the referee for both sides but more so for Liverpool (due to the amount of possession).
Second half Kenny must have said something as the team came back to life and the need for a win came back and saw plenty more shots but still nothing to land in the back of the net. Given was given a lot more work to do and with a high possession percentage of 70%, surely something would have happened!
Shelvey was taken off after a game that saw his performance seem too hesitant, for Bellamy, Downing was off for Carroll which didn't make much sense as he was doing exceedingly well compared to Henderson, although Henderson has had much more shots on target.
Enrique was taken off for the return of Agger as he held down Enriques position.
Flanagan played a much more positive role than his previous games and showed a real growth in his ability but still has a little bit of hesitant up against 2 or more players; a bit of nervousness if anything.
With all four strikers up forward, a goal was imminent but it still took too much time but a cross in from Gerrard met Agger who's header whacked the bar and into the face of Suarez who knocked it into the roof.
The late equalised riled up the kop and the team to continue pushing forward but with Villa happy with a draw, time was continuously wasted with injuries and substitutes.
Carroll had a chance to score but his header went over. Gerrard had taken a cracker of a shot but Given's was able to parry it away.
In the end, a draw was all that Liverpool were able to muster.
Analysis
A good game but there were so many issues with the refereeing on both teams. Two penalty calls were not given as Suarez sees Herd handle the ball but the referee was not convinced, it was a bit of a desperate attempt to keep Suarez at bay and it worked but not great judgement by Michael Oliver. Second saw Kuyt also claiming a handball but it was not to be. A simulation from Suarez was given as Oliver showed him the yellow card, replays clearly shows he was stood on. Second was for new fella Carruthers who was also stood on but was given a card for simulation so a poor refereed game for both sides. Disappointing referee, don't you think it's time for replays to be used to keep the game fair?
Other wise the game wasn't too bad but it took far too long for Liverpool to really make something of it.
Kuyt showed his hard-work ethics while Gerrard showed us all just why he's the skipper while Downing played a decent game, providing many balls but maybe his accuracy needs sharpening. Henderson attacked a lot more but still to really show structure or understanding of the players around him. Shelvey was far too defensive and seemed to give the ball away too much. Flanagan had done well but Villa saw him as a target to attack and aimed down the left hand side to try and take on the kid but his determination showed and really put up a fight.
Suarez moved in and out getting and holding the ball well but little support in the centre made it difficult.
Doni did really well for his first game, besides the goal as that goal really was impossible for him to save. No problems here with his performance at all and happy for him to play the next few games.
Main issue up front seemed to be the lack of movement. Kuyt was playing extremely wide and not really holding the centre as much. Suarez was always surrounded by 2 defenders at all times making it hard for him to run through. As much as he moves and makes space, no one is there to drop into it and attack the ball.
With the lack of movement, no space is opened which saw why the Villa defence didn't have to move and were able to stay in their positions to deter any attack.
Towards the end of the second half, this became even more apparent. Both Suarez and Carroll in the centre, Suarez moves across Carroll who holds the 2-3 defenders yet Bellamy still aimed for the tall fella rather than playing Suarez who was moving into an open space.
Suarez seemed to know how to play up front but the midfielders, Shelvey and Henderson don't seem to push forward to draw out the defenders and give themselves as option.
Gerrard was holding outside the box and occasionally pushing forward.
The midfielder they needed was Maxi.
He proved his worth at the end of the season where he was constantly in the box but furthest away to collect the spilled balls and taking cracking shots but always dropping into space to attack. An absolute shame he isn't being played.
The Reds weren't able to take away a win but managed to at least break their losing streak. Anfield still cries for a win. With only 5 wins at home, the once named Fortress seems to have lowered to a moat and a town hall. Rebuilding is necessary and looking at the bigger picture, Dalglish is yet to find someone to replace the spot once held by Alonso. Since his departure, Liverpool's attack has yet to have a real impact in a game and even more so, the experiment of players, mixture of pairings are causing the team to really breakdown. Henderson really wasn't the answer but with any player that has lasted until now, they all took time. There was a time where Skrtel was criticised, now a solid choice for centre back. Lucas, once booed every game, now a prized player who has been out for a while and we miss him. Although time is not what is given to Kenny at the moment with the need to bring more than just a trophies, a fourth position.
In a time where teams are buying their way to the top, the right player needs to brought over to the team and a player that wants to play for the team. At the moment, I feel we were too hasty with the purchase of players over the Summer.
But this game has shown that Liverpool still have fight in them and there is still time to prove their worth and true ability.
A game to watch is definitely the F.A. Cup Semi-Finals against Everton who are still in form after a tough away game against an inform home team at Norwich.
Lets see what the Reds can come up with.
The Line-Up
Doni starts for his debut in goal, the Brazilian should show some real ability and a good one to test against Villa as Mcleish sets up Heskey to return to Anfield and the new appointed captain with Petrov's absence, Gabby Agbonlahor.
In the back with Kelly and Johnson still out, Flanagan continues his first team appearance for the club. Liverpool sees the return of Daniel Agger on the bench with Carragher and Skrtel in the Centre of defence and the ever so offensive Enrique on the left.
Midfield we have Shelvey, Henderson, Gerrard and Downing. Shelvey is given another chance to play hopefully to show his worth while Henderson... well we'll see whether he's figured out what he's doing.
Curious to see as Maxi is again, yet to be used with his experience and ability to play well with Kuyt and Gerrard is brushed aside.
Up front we had the ever threatening Suarez and the return on Kuyt. Rumours of Kuyt have appeared as it seems he has been looking at his stay at Anfield as a big doubt since the arrival of Carroll, Suarez, Adam and Henderson, he hasn't really ahd the chance to play as often even though he was such a central piece of Anfield's pick-up last season.
The frustration is understandable since his ability to play great football is always seen but not always used this season.
The Game!
What can we possibly say? A start that should have been a great run of goals from Liverpool but Villa were not about to let anything go without a fight. Kuyt was the first to really have a chance but his 5 yard shot saw him blast it over the roof.
After a shot on target saw Doni work to slap away the ball, Bannan was the one to collect and a lay-off to Herd sees him take a brilliantly struck shot that curved away from Doni. A brilliant shot and there really wasn't anything Doni could do, though the question stands as to why Herd was able to get into so much space?
Following there were plenty to shout about as Villa continued their assault but Liverpool were reacting and countering extremely well, until the final third where the problem was a lot more apparent than their previous games.
A few penalty calls not given, and a terrible run of calls from the referee for both sides but more so for Liverpool (due to the amount of possession).
Second half Kenny must have said something as the team came back to life and the need for a win came back and saw plenty more shots but still nothing to land in the back of the net. Given was given a lot more work to do and with a high possession percentage of 70%, surely something would have happened!
Shelvey was taken off after a game that saw his performance seem too hesitant, for Bellamy, Downing was off for Carroll which didn't make much sense as he was doing exceedingly well compared to Henderson, although Henderson has had much more shots on target.
Enrique was taken off for the return of Agger as he held down Enriques position.
Flanagan played a much more positive role than his previous games and showed a real growth in his ability but still has a little bit of hesitant up against 2 or more players; a bit of nervousness if anything.
With all four strikers up forward, a goal was imminent but it still took too much time but a cross in from Gerrard met Agger who's header whacked the bar and into the face of Suarez who knocked it into the roof.
The late equalised riled up the kop and the team to continue pushing forward but with Villa happy with a draw, time was continuously wasted with injuries and substitutes.
Carroll had a chance to score but his header went over. Gerrard had taken a cracker of a shot but Given's was able to parry it away.
In the end, a draw was all that Liverpool were able to muster.
Analysis
A good game but there were so many issues with the refereeing on both teams. Two penalty calls were not given as Suarez sees Herd handle the ball but the referee was not convinced, it was a bit of a desperate attempt to keep Suarez at bay and it worked but not great judgement by Michael Oliver. Second saw Kuyt also claiming a handball but it was not to be. A simulation from Suarez was given as Oliver showed him the yellow card, replays clearly shows he was stood on. Second was for new fella Carruthers who was also stood on but was given a card for simulation so a poor refereed game for both sides. Disappointing referee, don't you think it's time for replays to be used to keep the game fair?
Other wise the game wasn't too bad but it took far too long for Liverpool to really make something of it.
Kuyt showed his hard-work ethics while Gerrard showed us all just why he's the skipper while Downing played a decent game, providing many balls but maybe his accuracy needs sharpening. Henderson attacked a lot more but still to really show structure or understanding of the players around him. Shelvey was far too defensive and seemed to give the ball away too much. Flanagan had done well but Villa saw him as a target to attack and aimed down the left hand side to try and take on the kid but his determination showed and really put up a fight.
Suarez moved in and out getting and holding the ball well but little support in the centre made it difficult.
Doni did really well for his first game, besides the goal as that goal really was impossible for him to save. No problems here with his performance at all and happy for him to play the next few games.
Main issue up front seemed to be the lack of movement. Kuyt was playing extremely wide and not really holding the centre as much. Suarez was always surrounded by 2 defenders at all times making it hard for him to run through. As much as he moves and makes space, no one is there to drop into it and attack the ball.
With the lack of movement, no space is opened which saw why the Villa defence didn't have to move and were able to stay in their positions to deter any attack.
Towards the end of the second half, this became even more apparent. Both Suarez and Carroll in the centre, Suarez moves across Carroll who holds the 2-3 defenders yet Bellamy still aimed for the tall fella rather than playing Suarez who was moving into an open space.
Suarez seemed to know how to play up front but the midfielders, Shelvey and Henderson don't seem to push forward to draw out the defenders and give themselves as option.
Gerrard was holding outside the box and occasionally pushing forward.
The midfielder they needed was Maxi.
He proved his worth at the end of the season where he was constantly in the box but furthest away to collect the spilled balls and taking cracking shots but always dropping into space to attack. An absolute shame he isn't being played.
The Reds weren't able to take away a win but managed to at least break their losing streak. Anfield still cries for a win. With only 5 wins at home, the once named Fortress seems to have lowered to a moat and a town hall. Rebuilding is necessary and looking at the bigger picture, Dalglish is yet to find someone to replace the spot once held by Alonso. Since his departure, Liverpool's attack has yet to have a real impact in a game and even more so, the experiment of players, mixture of pairings are causing the team to really breakdown. Henderson really wasn't the answer but with any player that has lasted until now, they all took time. There was a time where Skrtel was criticised, now a solid choice for centre back. Lucas, once booed every game, now a prized player who has been out for a while and we miss him. Although time is not what is given to Kenny at the moment with the need to bring more than just a trophies, a fourth position.
In a time where teams are buying their way to the top, the right player needs to brought over to the team and a player that wants to play for the team. At the moment, I feel we were too hasty with the purchase of players over the Summer.
But this game has shown that Liverpool still have fight in them and there is still time to prove their worth and true ability.
A game to watch is definitely the F.A. Cup Semi-Finals against Everton who are still in form after a tough away game against an inform home team at Norwich.
Lets see what the Reds can come up with.
Tuesday, 3 April 2012
A Long Reign Needs Time for King Kenny
A lot of talk about how Carroll has been playing and his game at his return to St James Park, this particular game shows exactly what he is doing. Nothing special.
When he was at Newcastle, he seemed to show such potential but since his move to Anfield, there has been little to no improvement. He has shown he can move, but only when he wants to and not when he needs to.
He's always expecting the ball to come to his feet rather than moving forward for the ball which, when you watch the games, Liverpool's players are always playing the ball forward or at least trying to. The midfield are always looking for Carroll but he doesn't seem to be able to be seen up front. He has skill but he's not showing it.
I feel he's acting like a spoilt brat at times and maybe the money has gone to his head and expecting everyone to play around him. He's also not adapting to situations well either and seems to stick to what he knows and let others around him manipulate his game. which brings me to his mental strength.
I don't think he really has any when he's on the pitch. His reaction time is particularly slow and his dive was a dive no matter how you look at it, which was unnecessary as he had a chance to score in the previous game as he came almost one-on-one with the keeper.
Instead of showing what Newcastle were missing, he showed exactly what they got rid of and a brilliant investment for them to bring Ba and Cisse in.
It seems we went to replace Torres with another Torres, who was at the time, not able to meet the back of the net. However Torres has actually picked up after scoring away in the Champions and again in the Premier League, he seems to be back in form. We all hoped that would be true of Carroll. Is he expecting to let us give him more time??
Yes Torres was always going to come back and everyone at Liverpool knew he would but with Carroll, we expected more but are our expectations being misplaced?
There is still time for him to redeem himself however if he is expecting to stay in the starting XI, he really does need to pick up his game, quit the whining on the pitch, move and meet the back of the net like he use to.
Suarez is ever causing trouble up front but goals are lacking. Having hit the wood works 7 times, but not scoring as many; the eight match ban seems to have taken it's toll but unlike Carroll, Suarez has games to his name and some beautiful goals at that.
I can see Suarez doing well next year and possibly scoring 20 odd goals if he keeps going at it the way he always has and with the right support behind him and along side him, he will definitely do well.
Kenny really needs to sort out who to play, obviously without his usual XI which now includes Reina out, things could get difficult but changing the Manager really isn't the solution.
Alex Ferguson is currently topping the table, and he took 6 years to build a team to win a cup and since then he has continuously done so winning cup after cup after cup.
Kenny is looking at the long run, like every Brilliant Scottish Manager, he is looking at bringing a team that will be able to play for years not just months and to do that we may need to have see these set backs.
Hopefully the higher-ups will see the bigger picture and see if Kenny still has the ability to go as far as he once did as player and as manager.
YNWA
Reserve Ahead of First
The latest results from the Reserve see them take the game to Villa Park as Rodolfo Borrell's boys take a win with a 4-1 result.
A rickety but aggressive start saw the line up of the usual squad and a return of Smith towards the end. Some brilliant goals from Eccleston, Suso, a debut goal from Mclaughin and a typical brilliant work between Sterling and Ngoo to give a final blow.
A consolation goal for Villa's Reserve as they were awarded a penalty towards the end as Conor Coady was penalised for a a very slight touch to bring down Grealish after a previous tackle which was clean but seemed more offensive.
Liverpool's academy have seen these startlets do so well, with the likes of Wisdom in the back spotting Sterling on the move throughout the game providing accurate and dangerously long balls while Sterling was a constant threat. Playing like a true team player, the final goal he could have taken himself but passed it onto Ngoo to clean up the game. Ngoo also showed his own skills with some brilliant foot work in the few minutes he was on but shows just shows what the Academy has in store.
Suso, a player who has been a brilliant addition to the Squad has brilliant insight on the pitch, finding players and picking the right ones to pass to, a lot of players who have potential to make the first team.
Eccleston has already had a chance in the first team but what needs to be seen is these players playing along side the experienced ones.
A nice team that would not break the strength Anfield has would be to introduce Suso along side Kuyt or Gerrard, give him some light and get him to really have a good 60 minutes to play.
Sterling, a player who really does have skill and still plenty of potential to grow, would work well along side Bellamy and Suarez, or even Kuyt. With the movement that these players have, sterling would not have trouble providing and scoring with these helping him and teaching him.
Ngoo a player who would work extremely well along side Suarez with his height and size and ball control to squeeze in and out of tough situations, he would learn a lot from Suarez's style of play but also his ability to move into the right areas. A feat once seen in a Crouch and Rush.
There Reserves have really upstaged the First team with much better results and having picked up after their dismal 0-6 loss to AJAX with a draw against Arsenal Reserve and a 2-0 win against Marseilles, a 4-1 win over Villa shows the improvement.
It maybe a case of Kenny bringing in some of these Reserves to the first team to try and mix it up.
Their next game is up against a West Bromich Albion who's counter part haven't been seen as doing their best but maybe their previous victory can spur them on.
A rickety but aggressive start saw the line up of the usual squad and a return of Smith towards the end. Some brilliant goals from Eccleston, Suso, a debut goal from Mclaughin and a typical brilliant work between Sterling and Ngoo to give a final blow.
A consolation goal for Villa's Reserve as they were awarded a penalty towards the end as Conor Coady was penalised for a a very slight touch to bring down Grealish after a previous tackle which was clean but seemed more offensive.
Liverpool's academy have seen these startlets do so well, with the likes of Wisdom in the back spotting Sterling on the move throughout the game providing accurate and dangerously long balls while Sterling was a constant threat. Playing like a true team player, the final goal he could have taken himself but passed it onto Ngoo to clean up the game. Ngoo also showed his own skills with some brilliant foot work in the few minutes he was on but shows just shows what the Academy has in store.
Suso, a player who has been a brilliant addition to the Squad has brilliant insight on the pitch, finding players and picking the right ones to pass to, a lot of players who have potential to make the first team.
Eccleston has already had a chance in the first team but what needs to be seen is these players playing along side the experienced ones.
A nice team that would not break the strength Anfield has would be to introduce Suso along side Kuyt or Gerrard, give him some light and get him to really have a good 60 minutes to play.
Sterling, a player who really does have skill and still plenty of potential to grow, would work well along side Bellamy and Suarez, or even Kuyt. With the movement that these players have, sterling would not have trouble providing and scoring with these helping him and teaching him.
Ngoo a player who would work extremely well along side Suarez with his height and size and ball control to squeeze in and out of tough situations, he would learn a lot from Suarez's style of play but also his ability to move into the right areas. A feat once seen in a Crouch and Rush.
There Reserves have really upstaged the First team with much better results and having picked up after their dismal 0-6 loss to AJAX with a draw against Arsenal Reserve and a 2-0 win against Marseilles, a 4-1 win over Villa shows the improvement.
It maybe a case of Kenny bringing in some of these Reserves to the first team to try and mix it up.
Their next game is up against a West Bromich Albion who's counter part haven't been seen as doing their best but maybe their previous victory can spur them on.
Sunday, 1 April 2012
6 out of 8, will it be 8 out of 10 reds?
Another miserable day for the reds as we see them lose 2-0 against the MAgpies with a lot of controversy.
Today's Line up saw the absence of Kelly, Johnson and Agger out one would suspect Kenny to play a defence line which best fit but with the only option of Flanagan on the right, and the usual suspects for the other three.
Midfield sees Gerrard in line with Spearing who will have to play a defensive role to support the young one in the back; Shelvey also comes in with Maxi and Kuyt STILL on the bench.
Up front, Kenny had stuck all three forwards to try and get some goals but seems wishful thinking as we see in the game.
In the first 15 minutes, Liverpool were dominants making some good chances but as of late, not finishing well. With the defence so weakened by the lack of experience of the four working together, it looked like the Magpies exposed the weakness and attacked Flanagan with their own strike force of Cisse. I do not blame Flanagan, I thought he did well but Cisse's ability to open up space was brilliant. Flanagan's lack of experience was his downfall for his errors.
After that first 15-16 minutes Cisse was able to score after breaking away from his man and cross one into the far corner.
After that, it all went downhill for Liverpool.
Carrolls chance for a goal as he went one on one with the keeper (with 2 defenders just on his tail) but instead of taking a shot, he dives and was given a yellow card and it was a poor dive at that.
Simpsons Handball was covered by Carroll for the referee to see and the linesman's line of sight would suggest it was behind the woodwork and out of his view so a penalty was not rewarded. Also a red card would have had to be given for a handball on the goal line.
The defence line held on well but cracks could be seen and the Toons spotted them and really made the backline work.
Second half saw the cracks appear as Cisse slips behind Flanagan, and you could see the young one constantly turning his head checking where he was except for the last few crucial moments where he let Cisse drop further away into space and net a second. Although controversy strikes again as Cisse was technically offside for his goal as no contact was made from the pass while he was still in an offside position.
Towards the end, Dalglish makes sustitutions of Bellamy, Carroll and Shelvey for Henderson, Kuyt and Downing. besides the Bellamy exchange, that should have been the line up for the team from the beginning.
Toons continued to push forward and a late challenge from Perch saw the frustration in Reina's eyes explode as he aims it at Perch. An apparent head-butt which was rather over-dramatised saw Reina see more Red than the shirts around him as he goes off. With all substitutes used up, Enrique was forced to fill his boots and gloves.
Personally, an extremely odd formation to have Shelvey, I can see why Kenny would play him, he is an excellent player but to provide for those players you also need a player who can cover the distance well and still support the front line. This is where Kuyt excels and should have been played from the start.
A harsh game for Flanagan to fill in for and now with Reina out for 3 games, pending an appeal from Liverpool for the Red card, Doni will be faced with the next few games which would see him appear for the Semi-Finals at Wembley where Liverpool's poor form are to face Merseyside Rivals Everton who are currently in form after 3 successive wins in a row in the league since the derby misery.
With that loss, it also sees Everton go above Liverpool and stay above Liverpool. Can they bounce back? with the Semi-Finals and 7 league games left, will the Reds be able to redeem themselves from this flop?
Excellent game to win for the Magpies, as Ben Arfa played some beautiful football, Ba providing a lot more than scoring but doing it all so well. Cisse, well with two goals, it's hard to say anything but good stuff as we see him score goals after goals since his arrival at St. James' Park.
Liverpool really need to push hard and the formation needs tightening up, glad to see Bellamy, Suarez and Carroll al out but the midfield was wrong, defence there wasn't much choice but they did well to keep it at 2-0 but that is still not acceptable as this season is Liverpool's worse season for conceding goals and so far only wolves have done worse in the number of losses since January.
Although the back was not great, then they should really look at the attacking formation. Take out Spearing and focus on the attack and keeping possession. Downing and Kuyt would have been a better pair to have. It wasn't as if the back needed help, it was the front that needed support and with Flanagan focusing on his defensive role as he should, for a junior player to come up against an International, there is a big gap, so trying to attack should not have been an option for him but to focus on his main role and allow Enrique to push.
Despite his performance today, Flanagan is doing well, he had a tough game to play and to defend a team who have been strong at home is a poor game to judge a young player like himself in. He will become a brilliant winger and Kenny giving him these games is good for him but it will put more pressure on him as well to fill in the boots of Johnson and Kelly.
We shall see what Doni is capable as he has yet to make a debut for Liverpool but we shall see first hand what he is made of soon enough.
Corinthians, Santos and Cruzeiro. Then he moved to AS Roma where he played along side Aquilani and former Red, John Arne Riise. He has plenty of experience and I'm sure will be another class Keeper for the Reds. May even see him challenge Reina for first Team Stopper position.
Today's Line up saw the absence of Kelly, Johnson and Agger out one would suspect Kenny to play a defence line which best fit but with the only option of Flanagan on the right, and the usual suspects for the other three.
Midfield sees Gerrard in line with Spearing who will have to play a defensive role to support the young one in the back; Shelvey also comes in with Maxi and Kuyt STILL on the bench.
Up front, Kenny had stuck all three forwards to try and get some goals but seems wishful thinking as we see in the game.
In the first 15 minutes, Liverpool were dominants making some good chances but as of late, not finishing well. With the defence so weakened by the lack of experience of the four working together, it looked like the Magpies exposed the weakness and attacked Flanagan with their own strike force of Cisse. I do not blame Flanagan, I thought he did well but Cisse's ability to open up space was brilliant. Flanagan's lack of experience was his downfall for his errors.
After that first 15-16 minutes Cisse was able to score after breaking away from his man and cross one into the far corner.
After that, it all went downhill for Liverpool.
Carrolls chance for a goal as he went one on one with the keeper (with 2 defenders just on his tail) but instead of taking a shot, he dives and was given a yellow card and it was a poor dive at that.
Simpsons Handball was covered by Carroll for the referee to see and the linesman's line of sight would suggest it was behind the woodwork and out of his view so a penalty was not rewarded. Also a red card would have had to be given for a handball on the goal line.
The defence line held on well but cracks could be seen and the Toons spotted them and really made the backline work.
Second half saw the cracks appear as Cisse slips behind Flanagan, and you could see the young one constantly turning his head checking where he was except for the last few crucial moments where he let Cisse drop further away into space and net a second. Although controversy strikes again as Cisse was technically offside for his goal as no contact was made from the pass while he was still in an offside position.
Towards the end, Dalglish makes sustitutions of Bellamy, Carroll and Shelvey for Henderson, Kuyt and Downing. besides the Bellamy exchange, that should have been the line up for the team from the beginning.
Toons continued to push forward and a late challenge from Perch saw the frustration in Reina's eyes explode as he aims it at Perch. An apparent head-butt which was rather over-dramatised saw Reina see more Red than the shirts around him as he goes off. With all substitutes used up, Enrique was forced to fill his boots and gloves.
Personally, an extremely odd formation to have Shelvey, I can see why Kenny would play him, he is an excellent player but to provide for those players you also need a player who can cover the distance well and still support the front line. This is where Kuyt excels and should have been played from the start.
A harsh game for Flanagan to fill in for and now with Reina out for 3 games, pending an appeal from Liverpool for the Red card, Doni will be faced with the next few games which would see him appear for the Semi-Finals at Wembley where Liverpool's poor form are to face Merseyside Rivals Everton who are currently in form after 3 successive wins in a row in the league since the derby misery.
With that loss, it also sees Everton go above Liverpool and stay above Liverpool. Can they bounce back? with the Semi-Finals and 7 league games left, will the Reds be able to redeem themselves from this flop?
Excellent game to win for the Magpies, as Ben Arfa played some beautiful football, Ba providing a lot more than scoring but doing it all so well. Cisse, well with two goals, it's hard to say anything but good stuff as we see him score goals after goals since his arrival at St. James' Park.
Liverpool really need to push hard and the formation needs tightening up, glad to see Bellamy, Suarez and Carroll al out but the midfield was wrong, defence there wasn't much choice but they did well to keep it at 2-0 but that is still not acceptable as this season is Liverpool's worse season for conceding goals and so far only wolves have done worse in the number of losses since January.
Although the back was not great, then they should really look at the attacking formation. Take out Spearing and focus on the attack and keeping possession. Downing and Kuyt would have been a better pair to have. It wasn't as if the back needed help, it was the front that needed support and with Flanagan focusing on his defensive role as he should, for a junior player to come up against an International, there is a big gap, so trying to attack should not have been an option for him but to focus on his main role and allow Enrique to push.
Despite his performance today, Flanagan is doing well, he had a tough game to play and to defend a team who have been strong at home is a poor game to judge a young player like himself in. He will become a brilliant winger and Kenny giving him these games is good for him but it will put more pressure on him as well to fill in the boots of Johnson and Kelly.
We shall see what Doni is capable as he has yet to make a debut for Liverpool but we shall see first hand what he is made of soon enough.
Corinthians, Santos and Cruzeiro. Then he moved to AS Roma where he played along side Aquilani and former Red, John Arne Riise. He has plenty of experience and I'm sure will be another class Keeper for the Reds. May even see him challenge Reina for first Team Stopper position.
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