OK, so far we're not very good. What are the reasons and how do we fix it?

Pretty much disagree with all of that mate:

So how do we fix this? Asked the OP!

I'm not a manager, so I wouldn't know entirely. But I have an opinion.

1. Continuity - to me this is of the utmost importance. Find your best XI, and stick with it. Do not drop players after one bad performance. It forces them to lose their confidence and self-belief.

We  might have been able to do that last season but now we have european matches this would do more harm than good. We have seen the massive drop off in performance from Stevie if he plays twice a week plus the new players need a run of games to esablish themselves and learn how to play with one another.

2. Drop Balotelli - he is disruptive to our style of play. He walks around too much in offside positions, and he doesn't work hard enough to close down the opposition. Also when in possession, if he gets a nudge he'd rather go down and win the free kick opposed to shrugging off a bad challenge and advancing forward in attack. His tendency to go down gives the opposition the chance to regain in numbers and defend against our useless set pieces.

If that' sthe case then what you're actually saying is that we need to move him on. If so, the next opportunity we have to do that is January at the minimum during which time we would have to rely on Borini - who needs time to get upto speed, and Lambert, who has looked awful so far. Sturridge, even when he is back from injury, is half the player when he plays alone.

3. Drop Markovic. For now, the boy has no confidence in himself. He is seemingly our worse transfer of the summer and I say that with confidence. He does need playing time, but no with us. Send him out on loan in January and let him get valuable experience at a club like Sunderland. Players need to hit the ground running at Liverpool, so we cannot afford to be patient in this respect.

It's a possibility but he seems to be a slow started at each club. Sending him out on loan would only delay the problem until he eventually returns  - at some point he has to learn how to play with his teammates.

4. Improve on central midfield come January. Gerrard and Henderson have been below par this season. Lucas and Allen are not much better still. These are average footballers. We need world class midfielders. Midfielders form the core of your team and without that core quality, everything else you will be capable of doing will be severely undermined.

Henderson and Allen are well "above average" but they are covering for Gerrard. "World Class" midfielders would help any team, of course, but we need to use what we have better. In general terms i agree we should be planning the transition for the end of Stevie's career and look to build around a new midfielder however a player like that is not going to be available in january.

5. Buy a world class forward in January. No more hunting for bargains or young players with this so called potential. We need players to hit the ground running. We need to start signing better players. It is that simple. Manchester United signed Juan Mata last winter due to their shoddy start. We need to do something very similar this winter if our poor form continues.

Very poor example. United already had Rooney, Kagawa, Janujaz who could play that position in an uninventive Moyes-style team. Unsurprisingly Mata has gone from a player-of-the-season candidate to a flop so far at United. Absolute waste of money for them. 

6. Bring in Steve Clarke as a defensive coach. Time for Brendan to swallow some pride and accept that he is not perfect.

Unless we are changing the entire way the team plays this is pointless. Clarke was better defensively because he got the team to play like a poor-man's Chelsea (Carra/Terry, Lucas/Makalele, Gerrard/Lampard, Carroll/Drogba) - low block, target man style that isolated Suarez. yes we would conceede less but it would negate the strengths of our pacy, interchanging players. Balotelli, ironically, would be perfect for the style but it would be a disaster for the rest of our attack (plus you would have dropped him anyway). Not only a bad idea but unrealistic given we sacked the man previously and since then he has moved from assistant to full-blown manager.

Disagree with no.2

Look at Southampton and West Ham. Made as many changes as we have and are performing to a higher standard. I agree that it isn't favourable buying a shed load of players, but nor is it when they are frighteningly average players carrying world class price tags.

Playing like Southanptom and West Ham is quite different than what we are trying to do though.

Both those teams play a relatively straightforward game of moving the ball quickly and pressing hard. It's much easier to achieve short term results like that, true, but performances for both will drop off in the latter half of the season and the style will only get them so far.

we are aiming higher by playing quick, inventive, football with team positinos constantly interchanging. It's the same problem Van Gaal has - when it clicks it will be hard to play against and therefore put us in contention to win the league but getting there takes time.

Pretty much disagree with all of that mate:


We  might have been able to do that last season but now we have european matches this would do more harm than good. We have seen the massive drop off in performance from Stevie if he plays twice a week plus the new players need a run of games to esablish themselves and learn how to play with one another.


If that' sthe case then what you're actually saying is that we need to move him on. If so, the next opportunity we have to do that is January at the minimum during which time we would have to rely on Borini - who needs time to get upto speed, and Lambert, who has looked awful so far. Sturridge, even when he is back from injury, is half the player when he plays alone.

It's a possibility but he seems to be a slow started at each club. Sending him out on loan would only delay the problem until he eventually returns  - at some point he has to learn how to play with his teammates.



Henderson and Allen are well "above average" but they are covering for Gerrard. "World Class" midfielders would help any team, of course, but we need to use what we have better. In general terms i agree we should be planning the transition for the end of Stevie's career and look to build around a new midfielder however a player like that is not going to be available in january.

Very poor example. United already had Rooney, Kagawa, Janujaz who could play that position in an uninventive Moyes-style team. Unsurprisingly Mata has gone from a player-of-the-season candidate to a flop so far at United. Absolute waste of money for them. 


Unless we are changing the entire way the team plays this is pointless. Clarke was better defensively because he got the team to play like a poor-man's Chelsea (Carra/Terry, Lucas/Makalele, Gerrard/Lampard, Carroll/Drogba) - low block, target man style that isolated Suarez. yes we would conceede less but it would negate the strengths of our pacy, interchanging players. Balotelli, ironically, would be perfect for the style but it would be a disaster for the rest of our attack (plus you would have dropped him anyway). Not only a bad idea but unrealistic given we sacked the man previously and since then he has moved from assistant to full-blown manager.

Good for you disagreeing with my entire post. I suppose we'll keep on doing what we are doing then. Good things come to those who wait, huh?

So how are United doing with "The Chosen One" this season?

Good for you disagreeing with my entire post. I suppose we'll keep on doing what we are doing then. Good things come to those who wait, huh?

So how are United doing with "The Chosen One" this season?

  - no worries mate - you might be right with every single point but we all have different opnions I guess.

United aren't doing great but there is a vast, vast difference with the football they are playing compared to Moyes. If they stick with Van Gaal long enough they will be successful  - and by thgat i mean challenging for titles again. He is a top level manager who understands what he is doing and will lay the correct foundations.

But, like us, you are talking about rebuilding a team from scratch. Playing at the very top level means that is a process that takes time and resources.

United could have got a different manager in who would have got better results but only ever reached a ceiling of qualifying for Champion's League.

For what it's worth i think the Glazers will sack LVG and due to results but it wil be a strategic mistake.

In a similar vein, we need to decide what what style we want the team to play and whether Brendan is the man to enact that. From result slast season, I would ay the answer is clear - however - it will take time.

Playing like Southanptom and West Ham is quite different than what we are trying to do though.

Both those teams play a relatively straightforward game of moving the ball quickly and pressing hard. It's much easier to achieve short term results like that, true, but performances for both will drop off in the latter half of the season and the style will only get them so far.

we are aiming higher by playing quick, inventive, football with team positinos constantly interchanging. It's the same problem Van Gaal has - when it clicks it will be hard to play against and therefore put us in contention to win the league but getting there takes time.

Disagree completely. Last season we were in contention to win the league. This season, the way we're playing we'll be lucky to make top 10. We are playing worse now than Brendan's debut season. All is currently not well.  In fact I'd go so far as to say we haven't played as badly continuously since the days of Roy.

...  it was our "dont look at the ball whatever you do" defending style.

Sakho playing then ?   

Disagree completely. Last season we were in contention to win the league. This season, the way we're playing we'll be lucky to make top 10. We are playing worse now than Brendan's debut season. All is currently not well.  In fact I'd go so far as to say we haven't played as badly continuously since the days of Roy.

i don't think we are disagreeing though. No-one is disputing we aren't playing as well as we did last season - the question is how do we change what we are dooing now that Suarez is gone?

The most important this is to win the game on Saturday. This is how we do it or at least how I'd try and do it if I were Brendan:

1. Drop Balotelli out of the squad. Tell him today that he isn't going to be part of it, that way if there is any nonsense it can blow over before the weekend and not effect the players who ARE playing.

2. Raise the passion level in the pre match presser, urge the crowd to get behind the team in the same way as they did before the end of last season. Lets make West Brom wonder what the F they're walking into in when their coach is bloacked by red and white on the way into Anfield, when they come out to a wall of noise. This is now an absolutely massive game, let's treat it as such.

3. Play Borini. What he lacks in ability he tries his best to make up for in effort, which as far as that equation goes is exactly what we need right now.

4. Play a midfield of Sterling, Lallana and Coutinho in front of Henderson and Gerrard. When they've got it, lets absolutely swarm all over them.

5. Don't try and win 1-0. Lets aim for 4-0 and that way if we fall a goal or two short, or they manage to score one, it doesn't matter.

The most important this is to win the game on Saturday. This is how we do it or at least how I'd try and do it if I were Brendan:

1. Drop Balotelli out of the squad. Tell him today that he isn't going to be part of it, that way if there is any nonsense it can blow over before the weekend and not effect the players who ARE playing.

2. Raise the passion level in the pre match presser, urge the crowd to get behind the team in the same way as they did before the end of last season. Lets make West Brom wonder what the F they're walking into in when their coach is bloacked by red and white on the way into Anfield, when they come out to a wall of noise. This is now an absolutely massive game, let's treat it as such.

3. Play Borini. What he lacks in ability he tries his best to make up for in effort, which as far as that equation goes is exactly what we need right now.

4. Play a midfield of Sterling, Lallana and Coutinho in front of Henderson and Gerrard. When they've got it, lets absolutely swarm all over them.

5. Don't try and win 1-0. Lets aim for 4-0 and that way if we fall a goal or two short, or they manage to score one, it doesn't matter.

Agree with some of this Mick.

Can see the logic in Borini, Balo just doesn't have the legs to chase for 90 mins where Borini does. We seem to need that urgency to start from the top as the pressing game just isn't there. We go in 1s and 2s at the moment and that is the very worst way to press as it's counter productive.

The team needs energy, when you're down like we are you need to have the stomach for the fight, you need to show the opposition you might be wounded but you're a dangerous animal. Unfortunately I think Gerrard is part of the problem, not in what he's doing but he doesn't have the legs to be an example in this department. We can't drop him as we have nobody to replace him but if this trend continues I'd like to see Allen brought in and Hendo dropped back in there, get more umph in the team.

As for your point about passion I'd like to see Brendan be a bit more animated on the touchline, the odd clap here and there isn't enough, needs to find his voice a bit too.

Just out of curiosity I had a look at the team that finished the season beating Newcastle 2-1.

Liverpool

22 Mignolet
05 Agger
37 Skrtel
38 Flanagan (Cissokho - 45' )
02 Johnson
24 Allen (Coutinho - 59' )
14 Henderson
08 Gerrard
31 Sterling
07 Suárez
15 Sturridge (Lucas - 80' Booked )

Only 5 of those players have started the last few games for us.
Mignolet, Skrtel, Henderson, Gerrard, Sterling.

Maybe the reason the team is playing like strangers is because they are.
Last night: Manquillo, Lovren, Markovic, Borini. Sub: Lambert, Lallana (6 new players)
Last weekend: Manquillo, Moreno, Lovren, Markovic, Lallana. Sub: Lambert (6 new players)

Has Brendan maybe pushed players into the team too quickly, or has his hand been forced?
The alternative: Borini, Lucas, Toure.

We can only hope that, as the season progresses, they gel.
Serious questions, for me, remain over letting senior squad players go.
Yes, we signed plenty, but the squad is no better and, without Suarez, the first team significantly weaker.

I am reminded of playing footie as a kid and coming up against a team who had a player who was clearly head and shoulders above anyone else on the pitch and that team won everything in their age group. Well we had that kid last season in Luis Suarez he was clearly head and shoulders above anyone in the team or the league now we have replaced him with Mario. Would it have been so awful to keep Pepe and Agger wouldn't we have been stronger with them in the squad?. After last season's wonderful performances and results this is turning out to be a nightmare.

Play 2 up front and stop with this 1 up front bullshit!

That still wont stop conceding at least 1 goal agame from set pieces!! We need that fixed we need clean sheets, when was the last?

But yes 2 up top be nice and Lambert be one of those 2 for me! Sturridge the other

Just out of curiosity I had a look at the team that finished the season beating Newcastle 2-1.

Liverpool

22 Mignolet
05 Agger
37 Skrtel
38 Flanagan (Cissokho - 45' )
02 Johnson
24 Allen (Coutinho - 59' )
14 Henderson
08 Gerrard
31 Sterling
07 Suárez
15 Sturridge (Lucas - 80' Booked )

Only 5 of those players have started the last few games for us.
Mignolet, Skrtel, Henderson, Gerrard, Sterling.

Maybe the reason the team is playing like strangers is because they are.
Last night: Manquillo, Lovren, Markovic, Borini. Sub: Lambert, Lallana (6 new players)
Last weekend: Manquillo, Moreno, Lovren, Markovic, Lallana. Sub: Lambert (6 new players)

Has Brendan maybe pushed players into the team too quickly, or has his hand been forced?
The alternative: Borini, Lucas, Toure.

We can only hope that, as the season progresses, they gel.
Serious questions, for me, remain over letting senior squad players go.
Yes, we signed plenty, but the squad is no better and, without Suarez, the first team significantly weaker.

Brendan only wants players he has signed. Reina, Agger, Johnson and Suso are all players purchased by Benitez. I have no doubt that these players would have done equally as good a job as what we currently have. The more Brendan transforms this into a complete Brendan team, the more we start to look like a mid table team with no end product. Even his Swamsea team were of a higher standard than what we currently have.

I think we need to play the team most similar to last season. If that means bringing in Flanagan and Johnson when fit, then so be it.

That still wont stop conceding at least 1 goal agame from set pieces!! We need that fixed we need clean sheets, when was the last?

But yes 2 up top be nice and Lambert be one of those 2 for me! Sturridge the other

this is what I don't get Lambert had a good season both as a goal scorer and a provider playing deep why the F**k has he not had a decent chance so far.?

I am reminded of playing footie as a kid and coming up against a team who had a player who was clearly head and shoulders above anyone else on the pitch and that team won everything in their age group. Well we had that kid last season in Luis Suarez he was clearly head and shoulders above anyone in the team or the league now we have replaced him with Mario. Would it have been so awful to keep Pepe and Agger wouldn't we have been stronger with them in the squad?. After last season's wonderful performances and results this is turning out to be a nightmare.

Keep Pepe. Maybe even play him instead of Mignolet at the moment.
Keep Agger. No Lovren.
Use Suso instead of Markovic. F**k it, have Ibe in the squad too.
Sign Mario & another top striker.

Squad would look about the same.
Keeper position would be stronger.
First team would be stronger.

this is what I don't get Lambert had a good season both as a goal scorer and a provider playing deep why the f**k has he not had a decent chance so far.?

Not alone that but he impacted against Southampton, impacted against City. Brendan has made some strange choices this term if were honest. Giving Lambert a few minutes here and there is pointless. We need an impact lets see if hes it let him loose

That still wont stop conceding at least 1 goal agame from set pieces!! We need that fixed we need clean sheets, when was the last?

But yes 2 up top be nice and Lambert be one of those 2 for me! Sturridge the other

I'd love us to not concede goals as well mate, but I'd take us scoring more than the oppo everyday of the week because it means we will come away with 3 points.

BR has a lot of sorting out to do Bri.

Not alone that but he impacted against Southampton, impacted against City. Brendan has made some strange choices this term if were honest. Giving Lambert a few minutes here and there is pointless. We need an impact lets see if hes it let him loose

I think most people on here even Brendan's most fervent supporters are a bit puzzled by some of his selections and buy's.

(SENT FROM MY OWN THREAD WHICH I'VE SUGGESTED IS CLOSED, AS IT DUPLICATED OTHER STUFF)

OK its easy to see whats going wrong. We can spend all day saying "So and so was sh*t, bench him and sell him".

But how would you solve the on pitch problem, if you were in charge?
I'm thinking the "lite solution" which will help matters. And the full blown, probably next Summer, more substantial work being done.

This is my idea:-
1)An experienced top class keeper. I don't know if Valdes will be fit. But that sort of thing. Someone who reads the game, bosses the defence, comes for crosses etc. Not someone who's just a shot stopper. Fast, effective distribution. A COMPLETE keeper. (I wonder if Bayern might sell us Reina..    )

2)Defence. Ok its not perfect. But the players (even with Agger gone, and Johnson looking to be fading away) aren't THAT bad. I don't think replacing the defenders is a priority. I think we need a better defensive coach. And a better midfield infront of them.

Manquillo and Moreno need to be nurtured. So I'd use Enrique and Flanagan, maybe Johnson if he gets back to the requisite level, intermittently with the 2 young Spaniards.

3) Central midfield. THIS is a big area. And its a major reason why we are crap defensively. AND why we are looking so clueless going forward. I don't think there's a SINGLE top class player in the whole midfield. Gerrard obviously used to be. But NEVER as a defensively midfielder.

Henderson is ok, but he's more of an able lieutenant than a leader. Coutinho lacks the breadth of skills, as does Allen.
Lucas is a crock, in PL terms. Can has potential, but again has some rawness which will take time to iron out.

I'd happily shift atleast both Lucas and Allen on. And use Gerrard pretty sparingly. My solution would be to buy a WORLD class midfielder in the mold of Viera, Pogba or Yaya Toure. Thats gonna cost money yes. And guess what? The club already HAS that, in abundance. Once a player is bought, he could be a lynchpin of a CL team for the next 5, 8, TEN years even. A big fee would be a small price worth paying. IF the board are serious about us as a top level club...

The rest of the team, I'll address later.

I'd like to have been a fly on the wall when the mythical "transfer committee" meets.

I'm pretty sure they'd say "you have x net to spend, and must meet x m on wages". Anything else must come in the next financial year.

The 1st problem is that the appearance of the accounts is the b all and end all for them. Which is a major problem, because sometimes you're better spending next yr's money this yr. (They dont want to, because its not the way private equity cos work, but its harmful to the longer term prospects of the football side. But they want to keep open the possibility of selling the club at any time).

The 2nd problem is that I'm sure Rodgers was told "you can buy 3 players for avg of 15m but you CANT buy one player for 45m". That sort of thing. The board consider players to be assets to buy young, buy low, develop and sell high. Any sensible top level manager realises that players are an essential tool. And the intracasies of it mean that sometimes u must pay more, for an older player who might deteriorate in value, but make the team MUCH more effective. This fundamental gulf is what the board simply cannot comprehend. And its a HUGE reason why we will underperform.

Buying 8 players is great if you are allowed 14 on the pitch. But we aren't.

I think most people on here even Brendan's most fervent supporters are a bit puzzled by some of his selections and buy's.

I was never a fan of the appointment. But I honestly think his hands are tied by "other forces"..

Lone striker and 10 men behind the ball.

When did this become a good idea? 

What is the point in having Gerrard AND Henderson sitting in front of the defenders.  We can't defend - you could put 5 players there and we'd concede from a corner.  Our only strategy is the one from last season of scoring one more than them. Sterling, Balotelli, Markovic/Lallana shouldn't be allowed to go in our own half against West Brom

Lone striker and 10 men behind the ball.

When did this become a good idea? 

Benitez   and Torres  ?