Good thread mate
I think we will see Stevie playing where he has the last few seasons.... as an attacking midfielder playing in the hole.
Lucas Adam
Suarez Gerrard Downing
Carroll
With Downing playing wide coming in off the wing, while Suarez plays narrow, moving wider on occasion. Gerrard just being Gerrard helping the midfield and the attack.
I think this is very much the way it will look on paper. Carrol will stay high up the pitch and very central to act as the target. Suarez, Gerrard, and Downing will all be able to interchange positions and give us a flowing pass and move feel, but I would imagine they will have relatively fixed roles within the system.
Suarez will drift inside and look to get through the channels. He can take advantage of flicks and knockdowns from Andy, while Gerrard and Adam are more than capable of putting him through on goal with a precise pass. He will keep opposition defenders honest and his pace should help prevent teams from playing with too high of a defensive line.
With Suarez pushing up and in, it will free up the right flank for Downing to switch over. Downing will effectively be able to roam from left to right, and back again at will. He will be told to get wide, find space, get on the ball, dribble at the defense, and make things happen.
Gerrard will be given his free role behind the main CF. He will be given the freedom to check back to receive the ball or push high to help the attack. He will basically be allowed to roam and create from anywhere his instincts tell him to play.
Playing like this will require both Lucas and Adam to sit deep, as we may get caught with all four of Carrol, Downing, Suarez, and Gerrard in attack and if we lose possession we will need 2 holding mids to be able to comfortably deal with counter attacks. It will also mean that our outside backs will need to be more selective about when they get forward to help with the attack, because we will not want to get caught with them too high up field on the counter.
It would be nice to see this team in the next few weeks:
Pepe
Kelly Skrtel Agger Enrique
Lucas Adam
Suarez Gerrard Downing
Carrol
Bench: Doni, Johno, Carra, Spearo, Hendo, Kuyt, Bellamy
Strong team with a good mix of youth and experience, and a very strong bench. Johno (when fully fit) could be a great sub to come on as he has explosive pace! Kuyt and Bellamy can also both be game changers, and the likes of Maxi, Aurelio, and Coates are not even in this proposed match day squad!!