banana wrote:Anoter away game. Another defeat. Maybe it's something wrong with the system? Maybe there's someting wrong with the mentality? Maybe there's something wrong with the tactics?
There are a lot of maybes. But there is one thing that is clear to every rational individual. There is something wrong with the players. I don't know where to start. Not one single player wore the shirt with pride today. Ok, I'll give thumbs up for Jamie Carragher. Riise showed a llot of effort. Dudek made some good saves. But that's it. I know we are decimated by injuries and I know some of the lads have just returned from long injury spells and probably not fit yet. But for others, I can not give any pardon. One player really stood out as a scapegoat today. Hyypia. And not only today. He has been extremely poor all season. He simply can not adapt to Benitez more attacking approach. Hyypia and Henchoz were great at defending the box when Gerrard and Hamann did all the work just in front of them. But this year when we push the line further up field and Gerrard and the other midfielders try to do other things than defend deep it just falls apart. Without protection from Hamann and Gerrard Hyypia gets exposed time and again. Like today when he allowed Pennant to slide behind his back and have a go at goal only to be denied by a brilliant Dudek save. And throughout the game Hyypia was terrorised by Heskey. Heskey won 90% of the headers. What about the penalty? Hyypia was out of position once again, and instead of getting back between Heskey and the goal he made a clumsy challenge from behind and the referee had no other option than giving the home side a penalty. That was the 5th time in the first 45 minutes that Hyypia was out of position and this time there was no Dudek or Carragher to save his azz. At 2-0 down it was all over. At home vs Fulham last weekend Hyypia and Garcia was to blame for Cole's goal. Garcia lost posession in midfield. That was by it self a bad error, but what was to follow was much worse. Only cole was in a dangerous position and Hyypia had every opportunity to deny cole space in front of goal. But instead of doing just that he was caught ball watching and allowed him to score a simple goal behind his back. I fully blame Hyypia for both goals away to blackburn, both away at fulham, one goal at Soton and many many more. He is not only directly responsible for a lot of goals. He makes the rest feel unsafe and vulnerable and we are always at risk of loosing goals with simple through balls and counter attacks because his lack of pace. I get sick when I try to think back at all the costly errors he has made, can't do that no more I just lose sleep. When we are up against pacey skillful strikers like Henry and Nistelroy it is obvious that they sooner rather than later will get a shot on goal behind Hyypias back. It is tragic that we have no really good central defender like Rio Ferdinand or Campbell or Gallas. That is a big big drawback for us. Carragher is good, but he is not yet in Gallas or Campbells league. Next season we have to sign two new central defenders of superb quality. They must have pace and strenght and also be able to distribute the ball well and play som decent creative balls every now and then. Right now there is no creativity at the back and hardly no creativity in midfield. And the end product is sad. Did we create more than ONE good goal scoring opportunity today, maybe I am wrong in claiming one good chance. We probably created ZERO. But how can we create when we have 20 dead legs on the pitch. Hyypia, Carragher, Traore, Biscan, Hamann, Riise ..... not the most creative set of players around?
When all this is said, I still feel we have made good progress from last season. Houllier had made us a counter attacking team. We defended deep down in our own half Wimbledon style and hoofed the ball up to our strikers. That was even worse. We played anti football. Now with Benitez the players have to play pass and move football again and they can't do it. They do not have the skills for that kind of football. Houllier did this to us. He just friggin concentrated on defending the box and we forgot how to play REAL football. Now we have to start all over again and build a new team. And we all know it is much harder to make a good attacking team than there is to build a defensive wall just in front of the box. So I'm afraid we have to hope for 4th spot and just try to prepare for a decent title shot next season at full strenght with some new additions, particularly some new defenders. And with no Hyypia. Hyypia officially DIED today february 13 2005.
Ratings:
Dudek 7 saved our azz a few times
Finnan 5 (did you cross the halfway line today?)
Carragher 6 never threathned. good positioning, solid tackling
Hyypia 2 created 3 goal scoring opportunities for birmingham and one penalty (another nightmare game)
Traore 3 What is there to say? Bad defending at 2nd goal
Biscan't 3 miracles don't happen
Hamann 4 never bossed midfield like he can do at his best
Gerrard 5 not his best game
Riise 6 always running and trying, bad defending at 2nd goal
Baros 5 bad game from our star striker
Morientes 5 no movement, slow and effortless
Red Macgregor wrote:Hyppia was awful against Fulham, Cole took the pi$$ out of him. Claiming to have scored the goal took the heat away from his poor performance.
Red Macgregor wrote:Get Real yourself Sunshine! Open your blinkered vision to what is happening out there on the park.
cisses_gona_get_ya wrote:Red Macgregor wrote:Get Real yourself Sunshine! Open your blinkered vision to what is happening out there on the park.
He Leon goes to nearly every game im sure hes not as blinkerd as most of us.
Red Macgregor wrote:cisses_gona_get_ya wrote:Red Macgregor wrote:Get Real yourself Sunshine! Open your blinkered vision to what is happening out there on the park.
He Leon goes to nearly every game im sure hes not as blinkerd as most of us.
Don't talk daft, he's the idiot who had a rage about people out of town not being qualified to pass any opinion's. The guy is a bigot !
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