Match Thread: Galatasaray v Liverpool

[jozza800]

And 2 of those players, kerkez and frimpong are tasked with coming in and replacing two of the best fullbacks ever to play for the club in obviously much different ways. It’ll take time merhinks.

It might take time.

Wirz has been given 8 games. Let's hope the other new recruits are given a little longer...

[jr81]

Which penalties?

The one against us, even if you believe it was too harsh or a soft call, those happen even in the Premier League.
You learn to deal with them and you cancel them out.

The one he might have thought we should have been awarded wasn't a pen by any stretch of the imagination.
Konate was slow to the ball and got the defender's leg instead and then fell down from a loss of balance.
It should have been a foul on him.

If you're complaining about penalty calls in a game where you barely caused any threat in open play, then you have bigger problems than you're willing to admit.

For once I'd love to have a manager just come out and admit, we were crap and deserved nothing from that game, and that we need to work on a lot of things on the training ground

Yes, exactly, complaining about the one against and the one for. He didn't seem overly concerned about the performance. In his words.

[Crimson Dynasty]

Konate wants Madrid. Liverpool come second to him.. I doubt thats why he playing shit. But i don't know why anyone would want to leave LFC.. He can't really care for us..which is a shame

What's more annoying about the both of them (him and Trent) and players wanting to go to Madrid from us is, you're wanting to go to a club where in most games you won't be the first pick for the starting lineup.

Gini rode the bench for most of his time at PSG after he left us on a free.
Trent was never going to displace club and fan favorite Carvajal, and Konate would be going to beef up their squad depth and like Gini at PSG, ride the bench for most of the time (for healthy wages, admittedly, but still....)

All while leaving a club where you have an automatic starter's spot even when you're playing like crap, and typically because you have teammates covering for your shortcomings.
And one where fans fall over themselves to make excuses for your screwups versus the cualdron that is the Madrid fanbase and press.

I'll never get it.

[eggy81]

It might take time.

Wirz has been given 8 games. Let's hope the other new recruits are given a little longer...

A couple of assists and a goal or two will quieten a lot of the wirtz chat. Need isak to get up to speed now asap.

[jozza800]

Robertson is still here, should have started tonight, I don't understand it

it's fucking simple stop changing the team so much, stick to what we know, play robbo in the tough games

Robbo was getting pelters every game last season.

[teesred]

Theres three glaring issues.
1. Wirtz, I get he needs time but the whole setup has been thrown up in the air to accommodate him. It's not working and leaves us exposed.
2. Konate, it's like he's trying to play badly he's so fucking bad.
3. RB. Three players constantly being swapped around and the two actual RBs look pretty piss poor.

That's yet another game where we've failed to have any semblance of control and a team finding opportunities far too fucking easily. We need Szobo,Mac,Grav as the midfield simple as that in my opinion.

[teesred]

Robbo was getting pelters every game last season.

Kerkez is far from the problem. He's actually steady, obviously not as much of an attacking threat but he's getting better defence wise. The defensive issues are all right sided.

[teesred]

A couple of assists and a goal or two will quieten a lot of the wirtz chat. Need isak to get up to speed now asap.

To be fair to him he's barely had any service. He'll be fine if we can create opportunities for him.

[eggy81]

To be fair to him he's barely had any service. He'll be fine if we can create opportunities for him.

It seems at the moment we are trying to play through incredibly tight spaces with very intricate 1 touch play that’s high risk for little reward at the moment. We need to get more width behind the full backs somehow to smash across some dangerous balls.

[Kev0909]

Kerkez is far from the problem. He's actually steady, obviously not as much of an attacking threat but he's getting better defence wise. The defensive issues are all right sided.

Same kerkez instead of booting it up field, put it out for a throw last min v palace and we conceded?

Same kerkez that wasn't even looking at the ball and one of the players in front of the throw in before the last one ?

[Kev0909]

Theres three glaring issues.
1. Wirtz, I get he needs time but the whole setup has been thrown up in the air to accommodate him. It's not working and leaves us exposed.
2. Konate, it's like he's trying to play badly he's so fucking bad.
3. RB. Three players constantly being swapped around and the two actual RBs look pretty piss poor.

That's yet another game where we've failed to have any semblance of control and a team finding opportunities far too fucking easily. We need Szobo,Mac,Grav as the midfield simple as that in my opinion.

I'd give frimpong a run and hope for the best, bradley is not the answer

[teesred]

Same kerkez instead of booting it up field, put it out for a throw last min v palace and we conceded?

Same kerkez that wasn't even looking at the ball and one of the players in front of the throw in before the last one ?

Yeah he's been okay aside from that I'd say.
He wasn't the only one not looking at the ball either.

[teesred]

It seems at the moment we are trying to play through incredibly tight spaces with very intricate 1 touch play that’s high risk for little reward at the moment. We need to get more width behind the full backs somehow to smash across some dangerous balls.

Agree. It's a lot of tippy tappy crappy as 19 calls it.
We overplay things a bit at times. Not tonight though obviously.

[Crimson Dynasty]

Theres three glaring issues.
1. Wirtz, I get he needs time but the whole setup has been thrown up in the air to accommodate him. It's not working and leaves us exposed.
2. Konate, it's like he's trying to play badly he's so fucking bad.
3. RB. Three players constantly being swapped around and the two actual RBs look pretty piss poor.

That's yet another game where we've failed to have any semblance of control and a team finding opportunities far too fucking easily. We need Szobo,Mac,Grav as the midfield simple as that in my opinion.

1. He needs to be benched to start the Chelsea game. Not as an indictment on him or his performance, but we need to go with a strong starting lineup that works for how we play and our best midfield three is Grav, Macca and Szobo. But also leaving him on the bench (and maybe bringing him on later during the game) might help take him out of the firing line of criticism he's receiving. It was always going to be hard going for him with his price tag that he came carrying - both him and Isak - which hang around their necks like lead albatrosses.

2. I honestly don't know what to do with him, but I'm open to starting a couple of games with Gomez partnering Virg ......again....just for stability. I know Gomez also has his moments, and is an injury-risk situation, but the Konate situation is just driving me straight up the wall I'd even be willing to see Endo or Nyoni back there instead of him.

3. Again,....Slot needs to pick one and stick with it. Szobo was a great stop-gap, but I'm not a fan of playing players out of position, and playing him there deprives us of what he gives us in the midfield.
Go with Conor - I realize he can get a bit too eager with the tackles and put himself at risk of getting carded early, but have a word, and have Frimpong available to step in if need be. Or Gomez.

But play defenders in defensive positions, first and foremost.

4. I'd also suggest starting Robbo in place of Kerkez as well on the other flank.
Again,....I'm just looking for stability and going with what we know works. Kerkez has improved a lot since his first couple of nightmare games, but there are just situations where we seem to be missing that little attacking thrust that Robbo still offers.


But we really need to knuckle down and get control of that midfield and that backline first and foremost.

And then worry about how we're going to cope with having to go without Ekitike for a while depending on how bad his injury was.

[teesred]

I'd give frimpong a run and hope for the best, bradley is not the answer

He needs to stick with one that's for sure, too much chop n change there and it's something we don't need when we are all wondering how many cock ups Konate is going to make.