Steven Caulker (Cardiff)

Stop talking sh*t. We conceded 50 goals ffs!

O.K. look. First off, let's be clear here. There's a distinction to between our defenders ability to operate within BR's system (i.e. "Defend") and our defence being responsible for missing out on the title over the course of an entire season. Liverpool lost the same number of games as Chelsea and finished the campaign two points clear of them due to drawing six times as opposed to their seven times. Yet Chelsea, despite the fact that they finished below us, are regarded to have the best defence in the league. Well clearly they don't because they finished with less points than us and that's the entire point I'm making. Points win titles. Goals conceded only come in to it if there's a tie on the points tally and then only by goal difference. We lost to City because Mason screwed us. We lost to Chelsea at Anfield because Gerrard slipped allowing Ba in on goal. That's four points dropped, enough to have won the league. Was our defence to blame for that? Again I'll say it, our defence is sh*t and needs an overhaul but is it solely to blame for not winning the title? If only it was as cut and dry as that.

Liverpool are considering a summer move for Cardiff's Steven Caulker as manager Brendan Rodgers seeks to improve his defence for next season, sources have told ESPN FC

http://www.espnfc.com/news/story/_/id/1818340/liverpool-weighing-deal-cardiff-defender-steven-caulker?cc=4716

Came on here to read about transfer targets.  If you wanna argue like school girls start another thread and piss off clogging this thread up with stuff that does not concern Caulker.

Well I'm always accused of being negative. However, I actually quite like what I've seen of Caulker.
And I've seen quite a bit of him.

He's a fast, elegant defender, with an impressive physique. You always see him looking around trying to anticipate. He's actually bigger than you'd think (atleast if the stats are to be believed).
Because he has terrific mobility. Apparently taller/as tall as than players like Stam, Vidic and Ferdinand.

Ofcourse he's been in a sh*te team, so the danger is that that had flattered him. (Read Carroll, Henderson etc).

The big question is how our whole team will set up defensively. And what the mix will be across the "back 6 or7" ie goalie to midfield.

Ofcourse some people were fuming when Sami was signed ("whats this 2.7m sh*te from some shitend of a football club"). But Sami wound up one of our best ever.

Back to Caulker, he's only 22, but already has a maturity. Many defenders (think Mark Wright, Tony Adams etc, develop MUCH later). I wouldn't complain at all if he signed.

I wonder if we'll see a 2nd centreback too? A real destroyer..?

O.K. look. First off, let's be clear here. There's a distinction to between our defenders ability to operate within BR's system (i.e. "Defend") and our defence being responsible for missing out on the title over the course of an entire season. Liverpool lost the same number of games as Chelsea and finished the campaign two points clear of them due to drawing six times as opposed to their seven times. Yet Chelsea, despite the fact that they finished below us, are regarded to have the best defence in the league. Well clearly they don't because they finished with less points than us and that's the entire point I'm making. Points win titles. Goals conceded only come in to it if there's a tie on the points tally and then only by goal difference. We lost to City because Mason screwed us. We lost to Chelsea at Anfield because Gerrard slipped allowing Ba in on goal. That's four points dropped, enough to have won the league. Was our defence to blame for that? Again I'll say it, our defence is sh*t and needs an overhaul but is it solely to blame for not winning the title? If only it was as cut and dry as that.

Can you please remind me what the goal difference was between us and Citeh? Even if we hadn't fecked it up against Palace we would still not have won. Now ask yourself would that have been because of the lack of goals scored or amount of goals conceded, hint we scored more or less the same number of goals as Citeh.
One other thing to remember please, next season we are in the CL where having a solid defence becomes much more important so yes we need to improve the defence, it is the number 1 priority this transfer period. As for Caulker, I trust Brendan's judgement on him, but where we really need to strengthen is at RB, so many goals were conceded form that flank, i.e Glen.

Came on here to read about transfer targets.  If you wanna argue like school girls start another thread and piss off clogging this thread up with stuff that does not concern Caulker.

It's absolutely relevant if it's a position that Caulker could potentially be playing. Targets have relevance if they are to replace or battle current squad members for a spot in the starting 11.

It was a mixture of not protecting the defence enough and defending too deep. Sakho and Skrtel don't work. Would be interesting seeing them with ilori as his pace may give them confidence to play a higher line.

We need to replace Agger. Him and Skrtel don't work well (see Swansea), and he gets outpaced too easily. I love him and he is a red but we need a world class new centre back to partner sakho and Skrtel. Caulker is good but not that good.

We need at least one full back. Replacing 3 of the starting back 4 is a big gamble so I would probably go

Johnson new cb sakho new lb

I think the lad is decent but plays the sort of defensive game that contradicts Brendan's style.

Doesn't have the composure on the ball that I think is neccessary to play in our system, in saying that though the areas he excels in are his athleticism and aerial abillity two attributes that were amiss throughout the season and responsible for the goal leakage.

I would take a punt on the lad but nothing in excess of 3-4m/

A very strange move to buy a CB from the bottom club in the league when you're finishing in the top 2

Agree entirely.  Not just that - but as a captain I don't see how he is going to be mentally capable to go from relegation to the missing ingredient to land a title.

Makes a nice change to be linked with a younger defensive player. Most of the players we seem to have been linked to Sagna, Williams, Masch, Cole are at the latter end of their careers. Hardly the FSG philosophy in action.

I think Caulker looks the type who will improve under Brendan. Good in the air, decent pace (?), just needs experience and a bit more composure on the ball. 

Honestly, from the little I have seen of him, I'd very much so have him here if I thought we needed some depth in the CB department but I genuinely don't think we do (Skrtel, Toure, Agger, Sahko, Coates, Ilori).  The fact his team got relegated would actually make me consider the lad now (if we can learn to not get mugged for him) and loan him out for a season because I think he looks quite good but it might mean sacrificing someone like Agger for it, something I'd consider (and probably agree to if we didn't have European competition this season).

Cardiff fans seem to think he's on his way to us.

http://www.ccmb.co.uk/fudforum/index.php?t=msg&th=389892&start=0&rid=0

I don't want to be bombarded but I like him a lot. He is a player that will improve much under Brendan. I disagree with the relegation argument because I think that he was one of the best players under Malky Mackay (who himself was a defender).

I just hope he and Emre Can are not dud buys. Could see us waste potentially over £20m and that would be a real shame, especially as we've been guilty of that every single summer.

I just hope he and Emre Can are not dud buys. Could see us waste potentially over £20m and that would be a real shame, especially as we've been guilty of that every single summer.

hate us to repeat past mistakes, buying largely unproven players is a big gamble...

hate us to repeat past mistakes, buying largely unproven players is a big gamble...

And buying known players isn't?  I'm sure Rodgers will have done due diligence with any player he's after, after all he has got a bigger scouting network than Robert Baden-Powell.

And buying known players isn't?  I'm sure Rodgers will have done due diligence with any player he's after, after all he has got a bigger scouting network than Robert Baden-Powell.

fair point, and Rodgers does seem to thrive on coaching youngsters, as for Baden Powell there have been suggestions that his interest in youngsters wasn't exactly innocent.