Liverpool FC Forum

[Ace Ventura]

I dont believe a play can be good at one tournament and bad in the other. If so... he aint a good player.

Bit of a daft statement there when styles of football are totally different in the Premiership and in Europe.
The pace of the league is so much faster, and players dont get the time on the ball or the same amount of space  they will in Europe.
Thats why he loses the ball far more in the league and he hasnt improved on that since last season.
Garcia has had a poor start to the league season, but played really well in Betis...and did ok against Chelsea in the Champions league.
I agree he should be dropped for league games...for now.
We have a good size squad with plenty of options, Rafa changes the team between league games to European games anyway...so why not play him in Europe for now.
What all the garcia slaters need to realise is that in Europe last season he was vital.
He was also joint top scorer in his first season...not bad for a player of his stature in the rough house Premiership.

[hobbes]

If Garcia is a waster on ball, who else to score us goal and who else to replace him? Stop the critism and get back to reality, it's about a team of us and not to insult one from them. Sometimes, we can play very well and people praise them and then when we play in bad form, one or two from them will get blasted. We have to learn from the lesson, and grow up from the mistake. Perharps Hyypia and traore did the mistake, but when they play well, shut your mouth off. Try not to blame on, discover the water front of whole team.

Hello mate. We are all concerned about Liverpool. No one here wants to just swear and curse our own players simply. We want them to improve. We dont want them to be too comfortable with their position. Like Kewell. He enjoyed his time in Liverpool. Injury...injury.. injury....Salary going on. Expenses is going on.

Garcia showed some talent and then now is playing like . Everyone knows that. Why?

A professional footballer must adapt quickly to the tournament. Garcia has had 1 year and now in his 2nd year.

Making mistakes is inevitable. But must correct it . Dont repeat it. Garcia seems to like doing the same mistakes again and again.

Hypia and Traore  did commit some errors. But they did well to defend. Traore conceded a penalty. Its an error. Fine. But no one got pass him easily. Thats why the moment he was taken off another goal went in. And The moment Hypia was taken out one more went in.

I am not saying this about Garcia for Chelsea's match alone but overall his performance sucks mate. I think he is heading towards Kewell's well.

Look. Crouch too need improvements. 1 off target shot in the whole 90 minutes is not what we wanted from him. Come on.
Wake up. We are playing football. Crouch only keep ball possession for a while then pass it on to another. He doesnt creat goal scoring oppurtunity neither scores. Xabi cannot keep making long passes to him and expect him to finish it.It doesn't work

Carra made a good long pass to Sinama Ponngole and Ponggole finished it in style. Has Crouch done similar attempt at least. No.

In a team, if the same person keeps making the same kind of mistakes, and the manager keeps playing him despite his mistakes, i bet you the team will be disoriented. There will be enimosity and  hatred. Everyone has to work together. I find Garcia is wasting every other players effort.

If we have 2 strikers we get better results. Thats for sure.

[Chelsea forever.]

stmike -

i just don't see anybody providing that bit of inspiration for us at the moment unless it's stevie g.

This is exactlly what I have been saying since I joined this forum and I have just voiced that in Bigmik's thread a few days ago. --->> Here

which leads me on to the main point. looking back now, i still cannot get my head around why we didn't just break the bank to get michael owen back. forget the fact that we would have to pay double what we sold him for. at this current time we desperately need a top class player to play off crouch. owen would have been perfect for this role. sinama pongolle seems like the best option but he's in and out of the side. cisse will be gone by this time next year. the fact that rafa brought him on with only ten minutes to go convinces me that he just doesn't rate the guy. morientes, for all his qualities, just hasn't adapted to the premiership at all yet

I have always said Rafa didnt want Owen, and I will once again try and explain why. In a 4-3-3 or 4-5-1 you use one striker and 2 forwards/wingers. If Rafa’s favored formation was a 4-4-2 then it would make much sense to buy Owen and im sure the deal would have gone through. But in a 4-5-1 you cannot possibly play Owen as the lone striker or on the flanks.

He wont work as a lone striker because he cannot possibly win all the long balls against the tall PL defenders. He cant hold up play, show muscle and play people in (one reason why Milan was sold).

He wont work on the flanks because he isn’t a winger. He cannot beat defenders and float crosses in and he certainly cant track back to defend.

Thus, keeping this 4-5-1 in mind Owen would be a complete misfit – which is why we never thought of him and Fergie who also plays the similar system ruled him out.

You speak of the desperate need of a ‘World Class’ player to play off Crouch. Firstly I think the term ‘World Class’ really doesn’t hold weight anymore. Its being used by everyone for just about everything. However, I do know what you mean but it makes little sense as Rafa wants 2 wide men and not another striker or a player to play off Crouch.

it's not rocket science. playing 4-5-1 (or 4-2-3-1, depending on how you want to look at it) at home is not going to get us results against the top sides who know how to defend. crouch is extremely isolated at times and unless the 3 behind the front man get up and support him regularly, we struggle to make chances. gerrard will always try and do this, but riise and garcia just aren't going to thrive using this system.

Well, a 4-5-1 can give you a result at home. It doesn’t matter how well a team defends, if you are capable of creating chances then you are capable of scoring goals. Again I stress (as I have in bigmik’s thread) , the fault is not in the system, the fault is in the players for the system.

The players you have do not favor the system Rafa wants to use. He is left in a dilemma of sort. In one way he has the player to use the system – Crouch, in another he doesn’t have the 2 wide players who he broke his head to sign. To make matters worse he has defenders who are not playing well.

One of the plus points (and there are many) of this system is that you have 3 players on the flanks. The fullback, the midfielder and the forward/winger. This means one of two things, (1) either the opposition fullback and midfielder have to mark 3 players, or (2) the opposition full back, and two midfielders have to mark 3 players (if they are not playing the same formation). This pulls their players out of position and gives you more space to exploit.

Also, if their fullback is good at defending and their midfielder (4-4-2) is good at attacking then you have a HUGE gap which 2 of your players can exploit. If they have a full back who is attacking all the time and if you assign one of your midfielders (Gerrard/Alonso/Hamman) to mark that full back instead of your forward/winger (Zenden/Pongo/Garcia) then you have that player free to exploit the space the full back is leaving open.

There are many permutations and combinations and I will not only go crazy but will get grey hair if I make myself explain everything in depth. But in short it’s a very intelligent system if the players are right to use it.

we need one, if not two quality wide men in january. stu mentioned breaking the bank to get joaquin but i'm not sure whether i'd advocate this. the fact is, i don't think we've got anything of great quality down the left either (unless kewell can somehow magically rediscover his form).

That is exactly what you need. Once you have 2 wide men - and not to players out wide - then a few things fall into place and you have your setup on both flanks for the full back who can defend and attack, the winger who can attack and defend and the Midfielder who will cover,attack, defend, mark etc etc ..

---

Your comments about your defense and having the best MF in the EPL.

Your defense is not 'weak' by any means, but it isnt strong either. IMO a lot of changes are due and a lot of cover is required. If you are to use this system you need more versatile fullbacks and you need complimenting CB's who can deal with 2 opposing strikers.

About your MF - I can say you have a very, very good midfield in Alonso, Gerrard, Sissoko + Hamman and Risse as an option. But I dont think you have the 'best' MF. What is the 'best' MF? If Fulhams MF of Diop-Boa Morte and whoever else they have is the most effective and gets the best results for their side then thats the best MF in the country. Arsenal have a super squad, but their MF of Pires-Fabregas-Gilberto-Lungberj isnt really as effective as say Charlton's - so you cant possibly say they have the better MF. They might have the better indivudial players but as a MF team they are not doin the biz.

IMHO I think you have a super MF in the MF 3. But as it brodens into the MF 5 your problems start and thus the MF 3 are rocked.

Best wishes

Cheers

[drummerphil]

well well well Chelsea forever returns.........good morning and all that that

[blind]

lose garcia, and get someone who can play the ball abit, and perhaps not lose it so much, then we maybe able to play a little better

garcia = waster (imo)

not bothered if i get slated for this, he's fucking shite

Bastian Schweinsteiger

If i say it once i say it a thousand times.

Bastian SchweinsteigerBastian SchweinsteigerBastian SchweinsteigerBastian SchweinsteigerBastian Schweinsteiger
Bastian SchweinsteigerBastian SchweinsteigerBastian SchweinsteigerBastian SchweinsteigerBastian Schweinsteiger
Bastian SchweinsteigerBastian SchweinsteigerBastian SchweinsteigerBastian SchweinsteigerBastian SchweinsteigerBastian SchweinsteigerBastian Schweinsteiger

[darwisigila]

steve malberenque.....get rid of Luis 'ball waster' Garcia

[stmichael]

steve malberenque

[Ace Ventura]

steve malberenque

I was going to ask who he was as well