If you have a centre midfield pairing of Lucas and Spearing as well you'll have a massive problem no matter who you have wide
But if you've got no wingers & that central pairing, you're truly fu**ed. As hard as it is to say for some, Lucas' defensive role yesterday, in the second half, sweeping up in front of the back four was superb (apart from one mishit clearance). Both he & Spearing dropped deeper as soon as Kyrgiakos came on the pitch, because Skrtel & Sotis aren't known for their pace. He made 4-5 great interceptions around the age of the box, a great tackle in the box and shepherded the opposition into less dangerous areas, for others to tackle. Offered nothing in the first half or going forward, during the whole game, whatsoever, but did stuff people used to praise the sh*t out of Mascherano for in the second half.
Carragher offered little at right back, no aid for the depressingly poor Kuyt, and I don't remember anything apart from one block. Wilson did the defensive side of his job adequately enough, but his distribution was abysmal, gave it away far too easily, far too often. Skrtel is starting to look like the pre-injury Skrtel, not the shirt-tugging, foul making liability he was earlier in the season, whereas Sotis is just a liability. Spearing was woeful, didn't offer anything all game, not even the dynamism that won him plaudits, from some corners, in the previous game. Was Miereles on the pitch, largely anonymous for me and fairly wasteful in possession, though I will cut him some slack, he was out of position and definitely looked it.
Suarez impressed again, when he actually got the ball, but Carroll was bullied out of it and I hate to say, at times, looked disinterested and sulky.
All in all though, this game was like an instant shot of Karma, we saw how losing two players disrupted Sunderland and today we were on the receiving end and coped as well as Sunderland did.
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