Ajax v Liverpool (CL Match Thread)

[Steveo]

@ Justin

No haven’t seen it - was it the same shot.?!? Were the pundits all drunk ex footballers? please dig it out - I can only reiterate - doesn’t matter if 500 pundits say it was touched if it in fact it wasn’t.

I posted the highlights - the slow mo is in there - it is clear as crystal that Adrian does not get any kind of a touch - IF the ball changes direction along its path then it is in the shot - swerve. I could blow on the ball and create a slight deviation to the spin yet - there is literally no change.

Really not sure why we are debating what is clear and obvious

Here I have made a cut of the ball and I cannot see any change whatsoever in the spin.

Now it is technically conceivable that he has in fact got the slightest of touches BUT he would have to touch it in such a way as to have zero perceptible effect on the spin.. The odds of that are incredibly long...

Take a look at the clip. If you can show me another one from behind the goal that shows a sudden change in direction - I am happy to accept my wrongness.

[Balinkay]

@Steveo @justin

Originally I thought he got a touch after seeing the first replay and then changed my mind when I saw the one Steveo posted. Super close. But in any case it shows he might have had it, had it actually been on target... might...

[CCTV]

I guess my final point on CCTVs 4231 obsession is Mane and Mo are 2 of THE most feared forward in Europe, it's taken them a lot of hard work and considerable evolution of Jurgen's 433 system to become as great and as consistent as they are, putting either at CFWD or LAM or RAM because in a 4231 the 3 are attacking midfiels/wingers positions, where they will be further away from goal, have the attentions of an FB and DM to escape before they are at the opposition CBs, well, to me, it's just an absurd bordering on ludicrous thing to fantasize about

How mny times do Mane and Mo get the vital first goal for us from their current positions making runs in behind to escape the full back and often the CB too? All the frickin time, yet this joker thinks we should play them 10 yards further back and rip up 5 years of incredible evolution and development based on his 5 years plus 4231 fantasy

In the PL in 18/19 Salah started at Cf in 12 games. Mostly 4231 iirc.

Played 12 scored 12 assisted 5

In his other 26 games he scored 10 & assisted 5 that season.

In those 12 games Salah scored the first goal 7 times netting another 5 goals.

The idea he can't play CF in a 4231 setup is as outrageous as you saying Thiago can't play in a 2 man midfield in 4231.

Around that time Shaqiri was getting a few games and minutes, most notably his 2 goals v Manu.
Today we have shaqiri fit, Minamino looking for minutes, Jones too and Jota looking best of the lot.

Mane is an irrepressible beast, I'd have no concerns about his game at lwf, 10, rwf or Cf.
The man is just brilliant.

[vin]

Is this not just a rather long winded way of saying what I said at first?


"He isn’t that bad a second choice.

Worth noting though that Adrian was beaten twice last night."

Think we are probably in agreement.

Yes, but my way was a well thought out way of saying it.

My comment about it "not being a shot on target" was tongue in cheek. A feeble shot that rolls into the hands of a keeper has statistically more significance than a shot like the one yesterday that hit the post. If you get what I'm trying to say?

I'm just glad we didn't concede.

[Steveo]

Fair do’s... Personally I am a bit concerned that we didn’t manage to score ourselves.

Think we can ride the new rear guard setup provided we are scoring lots of goals with regularity - defences inevitably creek when front lines falter.

Really want to get Jota in the goals - looks like a fabulous threat.

[Nineteenx]

In the PL in 18/19 Salah started at Cf in 12 games. Mostly 4231 iirc.

Played 12 scored 12 assisted 5

In his other 26 games he scored 10 & assisted 5 that season.

In those 12 games Salah scored the first goal 7 times netting another 5 goals.

The idea he can't play CF in a 4231 setup is as outrageous as you saying Thiago can't play in a 2 man midfield in 4231.

Around that time Shaqiri was getting a few games and minutes, most notably his 2 goals v Manu.
Today we have shaqiri fit, Minamino looking for minutes, Jones too and Jota looking best of the lot.

Mane is an irrepressible beast, I'd have no concerns about his game at lwf, 10, rwf or Cf.
The man is just brilliant.

If it aint broken don't fix it

We drew 3 and lost 1 of our 12 games at 4231 that season, i know because i checked the line ups on the official site

We won a Champions League final with 433 and a first league title in 30 years last seaon smashing almost every record and club record in the process and we'd have smashed the all time points record but for the enforced Covid break and Jurgen's tinkering

We can't weaken ourselves just to give players that aren't good enough to make a place in the 11 their own, they have to work hard wait for their chance and earn it, we've never done it before either, except for with Fab and Joe, but Jurgen has a weird thing going on with those 2 as all managers seem to with 1 or 2 player

To me it seems utterly moronic to suggest changing something that has won us a Champions League and premier league title and has provedbeyond any shadow of a doubt to be THE best and most consistent system to get the very best from our players

[Nineteenx]

Shaq, not good enough, Jurgen didn't fancy him for most games that season even though actually fit a lot of the time

Minamino is never a false 9 and his best performances at Salzburg were predominantly at RFWD with a few at LFWD and has shown nothing like enough in the opportunities he has been given to suggest he should start a Prem game

Jones like Minamino is constantly given opportunities out of his best position and hasn't shown nearly enough

Jota has impressed but he's a 20-30 minute cameo player or cup game against lesser opposition player right now, he is nowhere near as good as Mane offensively defensively physically or mentally and as brilliant as Mane is he is nowhere near as good or threatening or devastatingly effective at CFWD or RFWD as he is at LFWD

[ianlfc]

Wtf is cfwd and rfwd ?

[Steveo]

Welsh...?

[Balinkay]

Wtf is cfwd and rfwd ?

Central and right forward would be my guess.

Think that's the sort of acronym PES uses.