The Midfield Conundrum

[miller0863]

Agree to a point but they need to be good enough. Elliot is not yet good enough to be continually selected to start the way he has been.
And as for Jones, he needs to go on loan for a full season to see if he develops, another one not yet good enough to start.
Bajcetic very well could end up being a starter for us but again, needs to develop before getting a regular start.

[miller0863]

LFCTV did a good piece on Curtis Jones this week and it really goes to underline his progress during the run in.
His performances have played a real part in our recent run and in turning our form around.
He was always good at keeping possession but appeared to scared of giving the ball away to have an affect on the game.

Now he’s getting a run in the side, he’s really starting to show what he can do, adding goals and assists to his game.

If he keeps going in this trajectory I see no reason why Curtis, a player who I wrote off for lacking the drive and aggression required, couldn’t develop into an excellent option in the Gini roll.

He’s certainly not lacking in confidence, keep it up Curtis la,

[teesred]

I agree Miller. I was/am probably one of his bigger critics' on here but I'm more than happy to be wrong.
I just hope it's not a purple patch due to playing for his place/future at LFC. Long may it continue for him.

[Nineteenx]

LFCTV did a good piece on Curtis Jones this week and it really goes to underline his progress during the run in.
His performances have played a real part in our recent run and in turning our form around.
He was always good at keeping possession but appeared to scared of giving the ball away to have an affect on the game.

Now he’s getting a run in the side, he’s really starting to show what he can do, adding goals and assists to his game.

If he keeps going in this trajectory I see no reason why Curtis, a player who I wrote off for lacking the drive and aggression required, couldn’t develop into an excellent option in the Gini roll.

He’s certainly not lacking in confidence, keep it up Curtis la,

Absolutely i called him Mr Safety Dance and would praise him when he did actually try and make things happen even if he got it wrong, because he was only going to improve by being brave enough to try. Great improvement so far, but still a long way to go, there were still 4 or 5 moments v Leicester it was wide open and not even a difficult ball to send our player clear and he saw it but didn't play it

[ianlfc]

Ianlfc's sources (my Da's seen it on the Interweb) can confirm that Alexis MacAllister will be our first signing of the summer .

[miller0863]

Still not completely sold on MacAllister but he is young and still has room to develop under Klopp.

[ianlfc]

Still not completely sold on MacAllister but he is young and still has room to develop under Klopp.

Sadio,Bobby, Mo, Robbo, Joel, Ali to name a few who excelled under Jurgen.
He's got previous on getting a tune out of players !!

[Nineteenx]

Posted this in the match thread but it kind of belongs here - I think we need to recruit to play BOTH systems, the 433 title winning system and the tweak system

One thing I don't like about the tweak, is I don't think it should be the be all and end all of how we play going forward, there were Elliott, Thiago and Jurgen reasons our right side didn't work for over half the season, now those issues are no longer there, there isn't any good reason I can see why we can't revert to our midfield 3 sitting more in some games or at points in some games and pushing both our full backs forward

Going title winning 433 for a spell in today's game might well have reaped dividends, I also think that doing so is important to re-establish certain movements and automation that will be incredibly beneficial in the tweak system for when it is more refined and Trent is popping up in his deep, half way line of advanced wide RB position

There are points in today's game and others we've played with the tweak, where the midfield and forward are pressing very well, but the opposition then play out because Trent is in a deep inside position, when he would have been in a good wide right pressing position in our 433 that would have prevented that

I just think completely binning off the 433 is a huge mistake, that way of playing remains so devastatingly effective as we stopped our ability to play it to those levels, other teams didn't rumble it from the end of last season to the start of this, we made specific changes that stopped it working, removing the LCM controller role and trying to instill a designated playmaker for 2 and we should recruit to play both that system and the new system

Our 2 thumping wins and best displays this season unsurprisingly came playing that way 433 with a LCM controller, after the second one v the filthy, we immediately took the LCM controller role out again and got beat, which is why I so vehemently refute all the excuses made and the silly notions th twe haven't been the architect of our own shortcomings more than anything else

The main difference was that was played with the LCM controller, Hendo alongside Fab bailing him out which made us much better defensively and they involved Trent, Virgil and others in our playmaking so the whole team was making the play

From the tweak, all that is required to switch to the title winning 433 is to have the attacking LCM drop into a LCM controller role alongside our No6 and to push both Robbo and Trent wide and have them attack and use the space and move into it to be found with switches and diagonals or to support the player ahead of them in receipt of one as they always used to

We make the pitch wider that way, and can have Mo and our LFWD right on the opposition last line of defence and keeping the width in the position they're more effective in

[Nineteenx]

All we're effectively doing with the tweak is robbing Peter to pay Paul we are sacrificng a hel of a lot we get from Trent and Robbo being wide and advanced to put Trent in an effective RCM controller position in transition alongside Fab

Brighton use our 433 title winning set up at times and in different phases and periods of games and they also use our current tweak in different phases and periods of games

[Kev0909]

5 new midfielders needed

3 cbs

2 forwards

and a haircut