Should Carragher keep his place for Man City?

Lot of people seeing Carragher as out MOTM at Arsenal.
I agree he was the pick of our defenders, although I thought our defending overall was poor.
So should he keep his place?

I would say, er, no.
While individually he looked decent, he was probably the main reason we spent most of the game camped on the edge of our own box, which for me was a big disappointment, regardless of the not-bad result.
He is solid but obviously he is slow, and I dont think he fancied a foot race against Podolski, Giroud or, gulp, Walcott.
So he drops back to not leave space behind him, and of course the whole back 4 have to go with him, and then the midfield get sucked back with them.

Do not want to see the same thing against City - (a) just as a matter of general principle and (b) lets be honest if the Arse had been even moderately clinical they would have had 4 or 5.

Plus Skrtel can be the future of our defense, and Carragher, useful though he still is to have around, can't.
Brendan has given Skrtel his public boot up the arse - now show a bit of faith and get him back in the team.

Based on his performance against Arsenal, he probably should and probably will.

Agree Daz

He played well Wednesday.. Deserves to keep his place.
Carra and Agger are a better partnership for me and I'm not a massive Skrtel fan..

But just simply Carra doesn't deserve to be dropped

Carra did have a good game against Arsenal, but it doesn't mean he should keep his place.  He has been a liability at the back more often than not in the last 18 months, and as mentioned his pace means we must play deeper to minimize the space between CB's and GK.  This is counterproductive to the ethos that BR is trying to set up. 

Also, Skrtel may not be having his best run of form, but he is still a very good center half and he has a good chemistry with Agger.  We will need his athleticism to counteract the pace of Aguero/Tevez on Sunday. 

Probably deserves it tho skrtel will start ad say

Carragher had a very good game against Arsenal. 

And he had to work immensely hard for all 98 minutes in the game.

And for that latter reason I wouldn't play him 4 days later.  As good as he played - I'd rather have Skrtel in the side against Man City.

Yes.

He's still the best defender we've got and if he doesn't and City play Dzeko we will see all our frailties return once more. Agger and Skrtel have proven too often this year they can't handle the big physical centre forwards.

And if anything, Wisdom plays better with Carra beside him.

Skrtel and Agger for me. Carragher played well but like JD says he would need the break after Wednesday night.

Carra should keep his place if he feels like he can play, he should be able to deal with Dzeko if he starts a lot better than Skrtel. He is also a massive presence at the back which is something we will need against City when it comes to organisation and such like.

 I wouldn't play him again no. He's more than proved he's still worth his slot in the squad, but at his age two games in four days is too much. Also, Skrtel has had a shot accross his bows now (I think next time Agger should get one) and hopefully that'll get him back to his best. I'd like to see us revert to our best back four unit, with Enrique and Johnson as full backs, Agger and Skrtel in at centre halves. That back four is pretty good by any standards, and both fullbacks bomb on as well.

I've a slight hunch Sturridge will miss out as well. He didn't take being subbed the other day too well, and my guess is we're going to go with pretty much a lone striker. If we are, there is no question Luis is our best bet, and I've a feeling we might see Borini replacing Danny Sturridge and playing the inside left role which the Uruguayan manfully filled against Arsenal. My other hope is that we call time on the Lucas rehabilitation programme and start with Gerrard as the holding midfielder. He's the best we've got in the position by about seven million miles, and although we compromise going forward I think this time it's the right call. Alongside him, I'd have Allen and Shelvey.   

If he's fit enough yes he should.

Gave me more comfort with his display than Skrtel has for a while.

I'd play Skrtel.
Its too soon after the Arsenal game.

Now Skrtel knows he needs to sharpen up.

On the basis of performance vs Arsenal, no.

Can his legs cope with 2 massive games in 4 days - don't know.

Do I want him to play - yes.

will he - don't know.


Comprehensve enough

He deserves to play based on form.

But JD raises a fair point about how soon the next game is.

I have a feeling he'll play.

I'd go Skrtel for the reason listed above.  And the fact Man City are not really a physical team up front aside from Toure in midfield - or is he away?

Carragher had a very good game against Arsenal. 

And he had to work immensely hard for all 98 minutes in the game.

And for that latter reason I wouldn't play him 4 days later.  As good as he played - I'd rather have Skrtel in the side against Man City.

Mate, that's the best argued opinion I've seen in this thread so far.

I agree with you 100%. He's not a young lad anymore, he must be wrecked after the arse match. Let him rest, I say.

And he had to work immensely hard for all 98 minutes in the game.

That is why its more than arguable he shouldn't, and probably won't, play against City.

Carragher probably won't keep his place for the City game due to the age/two games in a week thing, but I think he should.

The way he didn't bottle out of taking a direct blow from a shot at close range against Arsenal is not a reason, but a symbol of why.

We need more steel at the back for this latter part of the season. We ship goals for fun when under attack at set pieces and our shape can be pulled all over the show. Carragher is a flea in everyones ear all around the defence and he orders people about.

Organisation is key against top sides. Not ultimately someone who can run around for long periods of time.

If Carragher didn't hoof the ball so much, I think we'd see a lot more of him, to be frank.

If Carragher didn't hoof the ball so much, I think we'd see a lot more of him, to be frank.

I actually think he has been listening to the manager Ken and hasn't hoofed it just as much when he has played this season.

I think Brendan thought initially that Skrtel and Agger were his top two, Jamie was a bit old to be playing all the time but as the season has went on and wiht Martin's indifferent form Jamie has moved his way in.

I see him playing more often than not for the remainder of the season.

I actually think he has been listening to the manager Ken and hasn't hoofed it just as much when he has played this season.

Well he's had to hasn't he? There's no chance anyone who is enthusiastic about hoofing, or who advocates it, will be allowed in the squad these days.

Well he's had to hasn't he? There's no chance anyone who is enthusiastic about hoofing, or who advocates it, will be allowed in the squad these days.

Too true!

But I do feel that Jamie has tried to adapt his game to suit the manager this season which is admirable at his age.

I think Carra will be on the bench for the start.  Gives him a rest and Skrtel something to prove.

I think we should keep him in there.

Tricky one, totally agree with the deeper line comments with Carra in the team due to his lack of pace. That said without him no matter who lines up in the back four there's no organiser or leader.

Going away from the City game and looking at our central defence as a whole it needs to be high if not top on the priority list next summer.

I honestly think if he's come through the Arsenal game OK and feels he can do another 90 he'll start. Skrtel is way too inconsistent for me some days he looks a world beater but others he looks like he belongs on local pitch on a Sunday morning.

A centre back should find the game easier as he plays more yet I find Skrtel doesn't learn from his mistakes and season after season he repeats them to our cost.

Is there anyone else left in the squad ?

I think like most that he played well on Wed, although we did drop a lot deeper than normal - maybe due to the Carra playing - and this saw us concede an awful lot of possession. With the rotation of players and the fact that he worked very hard the other night I would be surprised to see him play. 

Skrtel has been rested/dropped and he is more than likely going to play - he has a the opportunity to make amends for the home game.

Tough question this one. I think he will play, it might be another quick game but he is a top pro who hasn't played a great deal in recent months so I suspect he will be up to the task physically. I thought he played well against a fast paced Arsenal side in mid-week. I don't have a problem who plays int his one, i'm not sure there is much to choose between them. I think I would just plump for Skrtel to get his place back but we'll see.

I'd personally say no for reasons that others have already mentioned such as:

• It is too much for him to play 2 games in 4 days especially against the calibre of clubs like Arsenal and City.
  
• Skrtel now knows he needs to step his game up or he is out of the team again

One thing that needs to happen is for Agger to get a kick up the arse too from Rodgers. I didn't watch the second half but I saw the build up to their goals and I'm fairly sure (not 100%) that Agger seemed to be partly to blame for both goals, more so the second where he was on his arse which meant Walcott had a bigger target to aim at with nobody in his way. 

If he is fit and able too.....yes he should play. He's a fantastic defender, rarely beaten in the air, positionally he is fantastic and he stays on everybody else's back throughout the game, making sure they are doing what they need to.

The issue with him though, is that we naturally defend deeper so we don't get caught in the space behind our defensive line and that can lead to us sitting on top of Pepe at times when we come under pressure.

I'm also not a massive fan of Skrtel these days, I think he's a bit sh*t basically. Never know what you're gonna get from him, whereas with Carra, you know exactly what you will get and he'll do his job very well for the team.

Despite everything he's done I feel that Carra's abilities are still under-rated by many, but you can see this season how much he offers when he does play.

One think all will agree and  can be sure of Carra's commitment and PASSION for the club and the team
        The question  most are asking is can he cope with 2 massive games in 4/5 days at 35
      If   Carra himself ,the physios, and Brendan Rodgers think that he can then the answer is  YES he should  play
      Maybe we lose a little bit of pace at the back when he playes,  but we gain  more concentration   in the defence
         
    if skrtel plays , he knows he needs a good performance to keep Carra out of the 11

     YNWA

Personally i'd start with Carragher myself. Not just on his performance midweek but also his organisational skills. He breeds confidence in the players around him. He commands respect.

While i understand the concerns regarding his fitness i'd rather give him an hour and then bring on Skrtel than the other way around. I rate Skrtel but over the last 12 months he's shown a distinct lack of progress, it's like he needs a babysitter with him in defence and we can't afford any passengers.

Liking the comments about steel, this man is made of it.

Carra to start for me.

Should he start? Yes he should, even at 35 he's still fit enough, and put's his body on the line unlike others.

Tricky one as he deserves his place but I doubt he'll play.  Brendan didn't play him against Oldham to keep him fresh for the Arsenal game, so I can't see him playing him again 4 days later.

Save him for the West Brom or Zenit game 

Keep Carragher in the team if he is up to it.

I hate to say it but Skrtel always looks like a bombscare. He is capable of putting in a fine performance 1 minute and then making a complete mess of it the next.

The concentration levels in the defence are much higher when Carragher players. He simply demands higher standards.