No Excuses, just some consideration.

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Last night we witnessed a lackluster performance from the Reds which was quite disappointing especially after the very encouraging performance against Spurs.

Last night’s game did not have any positives from our side, but after a good night’s sleep and some reflections I’ve come up with the following considerations:

• As far as the line-up is concerned, I feel that Rafa went for the best selection with what he had available. Maybe it was too early for Stevie G to return and it was certainly not the best day to play him in the ‘hole’. Personally I would have played Aquilani instead of Stevie from the first minute, making adjustments to the line-up and game plan as we went along.
• Mick McCarthy saw us play against Spurs, and also saw how we chased every ball (which we still did last night). However, his master plan was simple. ‘Run more than the Reds and disrupt their game’. We can safely say his plan was a success. Teams that are technically inferior to you can only stand a chance of getting something out of a game by trying to outrun you. They may have not outrun us, but they did run as much as we did.
• The Reds are used to play on the immaculate green of Anfield which resembles a high quality Persian rug. The turf at Molinuex was skinned to the bare minimum so much so the pitch seemed brown, not green. This made for a harder surface and a jittery ball movement. In fact we rarely put a decent string of passes together.
• I noticed that our back four remain too close to the penalty area lately, giving the opponents more depth in which to put their studied schemes in practice. We used to operate a very efficient and almost flawless offside trap, which we don’t seem to do anymore.
• Last night the forward forays of our fullbacks were very limited and they seemed to remain pinned back to their positions.
• I’ve always thought that a manager can interpret the oppositions game plan within the first 10/15 minutes of play, and it seems evident that Wolves were out to disrupt more than construct. We did not change our game plan except for the insertion of Ngog for Riera which did give some spice to our attacking options, other than that we persisted with the same movements throughout the game and I felt disappointed that Maxi and Riera did not give as much width as we had hoped for.

A team like Liverpool should get all three points from such a game. We should not encounter ‘difficulties’ to impose our game against sides like Wolves. We really cannot afford to drop points in this manner.

We could and should have done much, much better!

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9 Comments

  1. Spot on! In fact last night’s draw didn’t come as a surprise. And sadly so. We tend to underachieve against such teams for years. I’m starting to wonder if Rafa is as good at motivating the team for this type of matches, as he does for the big games and CL matches.
    As a soccer pundit here in Bulgaria noted – “Rafa won the game vs Spurs”. The motivation, tactics and subs were top-level. and the team played and fought hard to earn the victory. We created more than enough chances and it’s a pity we took only two of them.
    Last night Rafa indeed fielded a strong line-up (considering the situation with injuries) and everything seemed OK. We started the game on a high and had a chance in the 1st minute!
    Then we started showing no ideas, no desire to take the 3pts and at the end we were lucky not to concede.
    It was obvious the team lacked the spark, they just lacked motivation. I’m asking myself would it be a mistake if Rafa had given our youngsters a chance in the last minutes. Pacheco would’ve played better than most of the players and given the number of matches he and Ngog have played together, it might look better at the end.
    I’m sick of us losing points in such games, where we must build upon last game’s success. Last season we lost the title in exactly the same way – draws against much, much weaker teams. We constantly counted the number of clean sheets, games without losing ant etc. The fact is, however, that we have no desire to win against such teams. That is a problem and Rafa does little to nothing to solve it. 4 years and still the same.

    P.S. Sorry for my english, mates ;)

  2. Amazing !! Mr.Bone …last night you said Aquilani for Lucas was best ..now you say the combination that RAFA managed was perfect..See this mate..I trust Liverpool Fc and the players..I belive in some of RAFA’s Grit..but whether You admit or not ..I belive Liverpool fc is not the right place for LUCAS or NGOG however promising so many people see them..they labour hard but to no worth..they could be loaned and then tried at best..anyways lucas plays out of position..RAFA is still persisting with either and being a bit too stubborn for Liverpool’s Good….Now you’ll ask who the would play…Pacheco anyday for NGOG..and in midfield Rafa messed it up..should have been Gerrard back and Aqua-man behind Kuyt..Lucas on the bench..BUt due to some reason RAFA has immense faith in LUcas..(Lucas is a hard-worker true..but so is Maschy and Kuyt..at Liverpool FC you should also have Class and am Sorry can’t see that in LUCAS too soon)..if you differ with me as most will and think its best to play a defensive team..(which Liverpool fc never were) then you will find RAFA by your side..but this experiment will not bear fruit often thats a guarantee..because we’ll lack goals anyways..

  3. Kaustav, last night I wrote “Many, of course, would have loved to see Aquilani in place of Lucas from the first minute.’ Can you read?
    Today I wrote ‘As far as the line-up is concerned, I feel that Rafa went for the best selection with what he had available.’ Can you read?
    This is totally different to what you are saying.

  4. Everywhere its out in the press that RAFA is tight-lipped about Juve talks..dont know what is so conclusive about that..anyways All I got to say is RAFA its true YOu have give Liverpool fc glory much more in recent times than anybody else..but please open up your ideas and see that if a system is not working change it..it may be a little late but still it should be tried..KUYT alone in attack is asking too much (for a player who last played there a LOONG LOONG time back atthe club)..and please stop saying EPL is so physical..we all know it is so..that doesn’t mean that our 20M man must watch matches against STOKES and Wolves..just because they would be physically enduring..
    I HONESTLY BELIVE YOU ARE BETTER THAN THIS…So do the new..because have options are few..No new players ..key ones injured so try a different formation and it would have been ideal for a game like the last one..but ..YOU went for the same ..because we beat the spurs this way…Well you CARRY HELLUVA experience so i hope you listen to both your heart and mind and Do something..TOUGH games coming up ..hope we’ll see the better of most of them (if not all!!)..I know i am being optimistic..but can’t think otherwise being a RED..HAIL LIVERPOOL FC!!!! YNWA!!!

  5. OK Mr.Bone i read it wrong !!!! M Sorry
    Today I wrote ‘As far as the line-up is concerned, I feel that Rafa went for the BEST SELECTION with what he had available.’

    ALL i meant was with Lucas in starting 11 and NGOG coming in later it wasn’t best by any stretch of imagination..(considering Gerrard was playable an aquilani fit..and PACHECO impressing wherever he went)..
    Hope you get my point..

  6. Kaustav! Got your point. We tried to predict the line up earlier in the week and must say it was the closest we had ever got. No one said Lucas was rubbish against Spurs, but it seems to me that when the team does not perform, he gets crucified first! The fact that he is not Liverpool material is a debatable issue, but I would dare say that there another couple of players that may not be Liverpool material.

  7. Exactly Mr. Bone.. i feel for lucas too..just wish he could play back (as CDM )at the position which got him the Brazilian player of the year before we got him…but we also have masch there so there we ask too much from a young lad like him..Interesting comments you make about not LFC material so who other do you think is like that..??(I would rate lucas equivalent to Rodwell but just like him as a CDm)..

  8. The game just exposes what I have against Rafa. That he has no Plan B. We always play great against teams that try to play football but we always have problem against “anti-football” teams. Don’t get me wrong, I love Rafa and am standing behind him but Rafa needs a plan B when things are not going for us in a match

  9. You complain about the Molineux surface but what about it? Is the fact that the grass today at most teams in most leagues, is much better than it used to be in your halcyon days back in the 70’s and 80’s.

    Perhaps too much pampering has lead to others taking advantage of that fact and taking the lead.

    I am a Wolves fan and have always been a Wolves fan but can remember when I was at school that Liverpool were THE team to beat and no matter what the ground condition, you could guarantee that they would always put in a good hard match.

    Nowadays, not so. You rely too much on Gerrard who unfortunately as a good player dives too much for my liking. I am not saying this to be contraversial, I admire anyone who does a professional job well. Gerrard has ruined his own credability by these unnecessary diving antics.

    Torres is a great player and a man who knows where the goal is. He would come just below Drogba for best striker in the Premiership though. The good thing about him is that he doesn’t lose his cool although he does tend to be a bit like a child who has lost his dummy when pushed as Wolves did to him.

    Originally, I was a fan of Rafa but to be honest and I’m sure that most of you will agree with this, he has tinkered more with your squad than Claudio Ranieri did with Chelski when he was accused of being “Tinkerman”.

    I think it’s time for him to go!

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