Y.N.W.A Thread III: Enter 'The Normal One'

[lolesi]

Geez we have some attacking options next season. Looking very promising.

Still need a LB though.

 

[Jack_Napier]

We've paid £25 million..

We still have too many players who surname begins with L.


Like what I've seen from Danny Ings in the pre season.
Sure he will face a tougher task when the real stuff commences but he's looked sharp.

It's fair whack of money isn't it. Apparently we have barely looked at Wijnaldum as well. Were offered him as Newcastle wanted rid and decided to take a chance.

I'm just a little worried about having too many attacking players for a side with no European commitments.

Hopefully we see a few going now as he squad just continues to balloon.

Have caught up with all our friendliest recently and few of the kids look quite promising. Kent, Woodburn and Ajaria all look quite good. Woodburn for 16 year old is doing very well. Really like the look of Kent as well. Powerfully built, quick and very direct. Hopefully the club sort out a decent loan for him to get him better playing time.

 

[cb4]

Still need a LB and a DM.

 

[lolesi]

Brad Smith to the cherries for 6 mil. Geez that price seems like a lot.. Good for us ! And another buy back option too.

Tells me we will 100% be signing another LB which is great news.

I also think it's good for Smith.. He should see more game time now and expectations won't be as high.. Interesting to see if he can kick on

 

[Captain Apollo]

Still need a LB and a DM.

ESPNFC are reporting we're back in for Ben Chilwell from Leicester City.

 

[cb4]

ESPNFC are reporting we're back in for Ben Chilwell from Leicester City.

Depressing. The Jetro Willems link was pleasing though.

 

[saint.nick]

Never seen Chilwell play but he's very highly thought of by the Leicester coaches and other people.

 

[Captain Apollo]

ESPNFC report that Liverpool are confident they can entice Chilwell to sign and reject Leicester City's 5 year contract offer.

They are also reporting it is just about signed and sealed that Joe Allen will be off to Stoke. Fee has been agreed aparently, just need to finalise terms with Allen.

 

[cb4]

Chilwell deal is off.
Allen has joined Stoke.
Brad Smith has left America.

Once again, I am not thrilled by the activities in the transfer window. Yes Mane is a good player and addresses the need for width, and yes, Gini is a very good player, but we still don't have a dominant, DM.
We have 3 very capable box to box midfielders in Gini, Can and Grujic, but none can play in the DM role.
Askin Can or Grujic to do it will take away their assets and be detrimental to their development.

Henderson and Milner are engines, Milner more of a winger, and both are awful in a midfield 2.
We have excellent keeper depth, excellent CB depth, awful fullback depth, no defensive midfielder, no wide depth.

I am really hoping that the sales of Balotelli and Benteke will spark interest in a DM. Badly.

 

[saint.nick]

Chilwell deal is off.
Allen has joined Stoke.
Brad Smith has left America.

Once again, I am not thrilled by the activities in the transfer window. Yes Mane is a good player and addresses the need for width, and yes, Gini is a very good player, but we still don't have a dominant, DM.
We have 3 very capable box to box midfielders in Gini, Can and Grujic, but none can play in the DM role.
Askin Can or Grujic to do it will take away their assets and be detrimental to their development.

Henderson and Milner are engines, Milner more of a winger, and both are awful in a midfield 2.
We have excellent keeper depth, excellent CB depth, awful fullback depth, no defensive midfielder, no wide depth.

I am really hoping that the sales of Balotelli and Benteke will spark interest in a DM. Badly.

We don't necessarily need a dedicated DM dude. Leicester for example won the league without a proper DM - Kante is not a defensive midfielder. If you play with two B2Bs then defensive duties can be alternated between the two players throughout the match. You don't always need someone who simply hangs around in front of the back 4 intercepting opposition passes/channels, and making tackles for the whole match, many top teams in Europe in fact operate without a pure DM. You're also forgetting that Henderson does a lot of defensive work off the ball which unfortnately goes unnoticed

 

[lolesi]

Sakho sent home from America. Klopp call

 

[cb4]

We don't necessarily need a dedicated DM dude. Leicester for example won the league without a proper DM - Kante is not a defensive midfielder. If you play with two B2Bs then defensive duties can be alternated between the two players throughout the match. You don't always need someone who simply hangs around in front of the back 4 intercepting opposition passes/channels, and making tackles for the whole match, many top teams in Europe in fact operate without a pure DM. You're also forgetting that Henderson does a lot of defensive work off the ball which unfortnately goes unnoticed

Henderson is also awful in a midfield 2. he was for Sunderland, and is for England and Liverpool.
Between Kante and Drinkwater they had 2 capable midfielders who could shield the CB's and cover fullbacks.

Our centrebacks are not crash hot. Matip is untested, Lovren is garbage, Sakho seems on the out and we just signed an oldy from Germany.
Someone needs to sit and hold them. Grugic and Can are not those players. They are B2B mids.

 

[saint.nick]

Henderson is also awful in a midfield 2. he was for Sunderland, and is for England and Liverpool.
Between Kante and Drinkwater they had 2 capable midfielders who could shield the CB's and cover fullbacks.

Our centrebacks are not crash hot. Matip is untested, Lovren is garbage, Sakho seems on the out and we just signed an oldy from Germany.
Someone needs to sit and hold them. Grugic and Can are not those players. They are B2B mids.

I don't think Lovren is garbage. He used to be, but he's improved to at least a satisfactory level. What happens with Sakho remains to be seen. I think he's got one more chance left. Klavan could surprise us all, he is still only 30, and very experienced.

Henderson has been carrying a niggling injury and that affected his performances. Despite that, his defensive work off the ball was still good.

I don't understand why two B2B mids can't share defensive work. That's why they are called box-to-box, because they defend as well as attack. Danny Drinkwater, in Ranieri's words, is a box-to-box, and Kante is effectively a box-to-box as well. He buzzed around the opposition disrupting their attack, and when the ball was won back, he flew forward with Vardy and Mahrez and initiated an attack. If you want to operate with only one B2B, then yeah, you might have a little trouble protecting your back four. But two is fine.

 

[cb4]

All you need to do is watch the Europa final to see that Lovren has not improved. he is a dead set liability.
He will be exactly the same as Skrtle. Somehow convince every manager he is a decent player when he is god awful.

The problem with us playing 2 B2B midfielders, is none of them can defend. Kante is an absolute beast defensively.
None of them are any good at breaking a play down either.
Can and Grugic play far too high to play in a midfield 2 with no DM. Joe Allen was our best midfieler when it came to breaking the play down, but he is way too small. Getting a chunk back for him was very impressive.

Hendo and Milner are very much engine players, but again, go too far forward and not enough defensive grunt. Having a big engine and working off the ball is not h same as shielding an incompetent defensive line and breaking down a play.


Game against Chelsea today at 1pm. No Sturridge, Wijnaldum, Benteke, Origi or Can. Hendo, Milner and Lallana on the bench. Think we will get wiped but will be fun to see how the squad is progressing.

 

[lolesi]

Wish the game was on live LFCTV or Gem.. On a night shift so would have been perfect.

 

[cb4]

Very strange that it isn't on LFC TV even as a delay.

 

[lolesi]

Not till 705pm tomorrow night mate ! Odd

 

[cb4]

Chelsea lead 1-0. Cahill scores off a corner. Rose above Grugic who was very poor.

 

[cb4]

Moreno and Grujic already booked for challenges on Willian.

 

[Captain Apollo]

From ESPNFC, why Sakho was sent back to the UK -

Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp explains Mamadou Sakho's U.S. explusion
by Glenn Price

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has confirmed that he sent defender Mamadou Sakho home from the United States preseason tour early because he repeatedly broke club rules.

The France international returned to the United Kingdom on Tuesday, having been ordered to leave the club's California training base in Palo Alto by Klopp.

The German boss has cited three reasons as to why he felt is was necessary for the centre-back return to Merseyside.

Sakho is to sit out the start of the Premier League season due to an Achilles injury and will continue his rehabilitation work at Melwood, the club's training ground.

"I have to build a group here, we have to start new here," Klopp said on Wednesday. "So I thought maybe it made sense for him to fly home to Liverpool and after eight or 10 days when we come back we can talk about it. It's not that serious.

"He nearly missed the departure of the plane, he missed a session and was late for a meal. We have some rules and we have to respect them. If somebody doesn't respect it or somebody gives me the feeling he is not respecting it then I have to react that's all.

"It is private how he reacted. But we had no argument, it wasn't 'aghh, you, no...'. I spoke. You cannot argue when only one person is speaking. That's all."

Klopp has ruled out hitting Sakho in the wallet for stepping out of line, but he does want to see the 26-year-old's attitude improve.

"Fine him? I am not interested in the money of the players," Klopp added. "Actually not really often in my life I've had to fine anybody because I want that we learn together to do the thing that is right.

"Always it is the same with every group. I don't like fining. Sometimes it's funny, when the fine is bull----. Come on, pay for it, that's nice. But mistakes -- fining never helps.

"It's not because they care about money, it's always yeah in the moment it hurts but after a while not. So I want them to do the things because they want to do it, that's all."