tonyeh wrote:"Kuyt behind Torres is a MUCH better option than Alonso behind Torres."
How do you figure that Bob?
Alonso in the hole behind Torres as a serious option? It would never work, mate. It's far too tight in there and he'd be harried off the ball at every turn. Alonso is at his best when he collects the ball from the defenders in the centre circle and has time to look up and spot a pass. He won't be effective playing with his back to goal, as the "in the hole" position demands. Nor will he have the required mobility to pull out to the flanks to create space and new angles of attack, the way Gerrard does in that role.
Kuyt, for all of his faults, is decent with his back to goal and he has the ability to peel out to wide areas to create space. As he showed last night with the backheel to Arbeloa and as he showed against the Mancs with his flick to Gerrard, he's also not terrible at picking a pass in tight quarters. And, for someone who is much maligned for his first touch, I've seen some pretty deft touches from him in the last few weeks (the way he brought the ball down before playing in Arbeloa last night, for instance).
So, in a nutshell, Alonso in the hole would be a serious mistake, IMO, while Kuyt could make it work if needs be. With all that said, I think Benayoun is the natural and deserved replacement for Gerrard in that position should Stevie be injured so it's a bit of a moot point.