(CL R16) - Liverpool 2-5 Real Madrid - Tuesday 21st February, 2023 (1st Leg)

[Whiskey]

f u other staff 

[Dr. Gonzo]

9 minutes ago, Stan said:

I wasn't watching the 2nd half but it appears other staff couldn't be arsed to do it. 

Sorry, was too busy being pissed off watching these millionaires fuck around for 75 minutes thinking they'd won it after the first 15 minutes.

[Spike]

How could they let a 2-0 lead slip?

[Dr. Gonzo]

Just now, Spike said:

How could they let a 2-0 lead slip?

They can't defend. The biggest question of the night is how did Real Madrid concede 2 to this shower of shite?

[Spike]

Just now, Dr. Gonzo said:

They can't defend. The biggest question of the night is how did Real Madrid concede 2 to this shower of shite?

Yeah the quality of that expensive defence is slipping fast. A shame too, van Dijk used to be amazing.

[Dr. Gonzo]

6 minutes ago, Spike said:

Yeah the quality of that expensive defence is slipping fast. A shame too, van Dijk used to be amazing.

He's shite now. Not as bad as Gomez though, he's gone from a decent CB with a promising future ahead of him to... idk what level he's at now, but not top flight football imo. Whoever our new Director of Football's going to be basically has an impossible job - rebuild the midfield and defense ASAP & if it's not done in a window or two, they'll be under immense pressure.

[Devil-Dick Willie]

That was pretty fucking funny. 

I'd keep Robo, VVD (and hope a new partner improves him) Jota, Diaz, Alisson and Salah as starters. Every other position I'd want a replacement. That's a whole midfield and 2 defenders. 

I have no idea how many straws it's going to take before the camels back breaks and you lot accept that the site TAA serves up at the back is not more than made up for in his attack and he is a net burden on the team. Move him up the pitch or hand him off to a team actually capable of playing some progressive football. 

[Dr. Gonzo]

Just now, Devil-Dick Willie said:

That was pretty fucking funny. 

I'd keep Robo, VVD (and hope a new partner improves him) Jota, Diaz, Alisson and Salah as starters. Every other position I'd want a replacement. That's a whole midfield and 2 defenders. 

I have no idea how many straws it's going to take before the camels back breaks and you lot accept that the site TAA serves up at the back is not more than made up for in his attack and he is a net burden on the team. Move him up the pitch or hand him off to a team actually capable of playing some progressive football. 

Robertson's been as shite defensively as Trent though. I think Diaz, Salah and Alisson should be the only people who are nailed on starters. Everyone else should be playing like the future of the club depends on it. Trent's only a burden when we've got no midfield covering for him and players not doing their jobs as CBs like today & most of this season.

[Devil-Dick Willie]

1 minute ago, Dr. Gonzo said:

Robertson's been as shite defensively as Trent though. I think Diaz, Salah and Alisson should be the only people who are nailed on starters. Everyone else should be playing like the future of the club depends on it. Trent's only a burden when we've got no midfield covering for him and players not doing their jobs as CBs like today & most of this season.

I thought Robbo was the best of a very bad bunch tonight. It wasn't Rodrygo who carved you up, and he made a key block when everyone else was nowhere. 

The amount of times I have heard that "TAA is only the worst defender in the premier league when mercury is in retro grade and the moon isn't full and there is a royal on the throne" is beyond a joke. You all have Stockholm syndrome. 

[Dr. Gonzo]

3 minutes ago, Devil-Dick Willie said:

I thought Robbo was the best of a very bad bunch tonight. It wasn't Rodrygo who carved you up, and he made a key block when everyone else was nowhere. 

The amount of times I have heard that "TAA is only the worst defender in the premier league when mercury is in retro grade and the moon isn't full and there is a royal on the throne" is beyond a joke. You all have Stockholm syndrome. 

He's not even the worst defender at Liverpool  Have you heard of Joe Gomez? This season all the CBs I think have been comfortably much more shite than Trent... and unlike Trent, they don't have the excuse of being our main fucking creator for their astounding shiteness.

I thought that kid we have in midfield was our best player tonight by a huge distance... and he disappeared in the second half and made it look like men against boys (at least, in his defense, that was the situation for him). He and Alisson are our players of the season, and honestly it's not even close... without Alisson we'd be relegation battling for sure.

[Michael]

No disrespect to Liverpool, but having watched both these teams this season, I don't think that this result was too much of a surprise.

[Devil-Dick Willie]

5 minutes ago, Dr. Gonzo said:

He's not even the worst defender at Liverpool  Have you heard of Joe Gomez? This season all the CBs I think have been comfortably much more shite than Trent... and unlike Trent, they don't have the excuse of being our main fucking creator for their astounding shiteness.

I thought that kid we have in midfield was our best player tonight by a huge distance... and he disappeared in the second half and made it look like men against boys (at least, in his defense, that was the situation for him). He and Alisson are our players of the season, and honestly it's not even close... without Alisson we'd be relegation battling for sure.

TAA and Joe mamma are hardly the same profile of defender though, and you understand my point. 

[Dr. Gonzo]

1 minute ago, Devil-Dick Willie said:

TAA and Joe mamma are hardly the same profile of defender though, and you understand my point. 

No but you'd expect an attacking fullback to have defensive limitations compared to a CB... and imo this season our biggest problems have been with our CBs being absolute dogshit and our midfield basically being non-existent.

[Devil-Dick Willie]

19 minutes ago, Dr. Gonzo said:

No but you'd expect an attacking fullback to have defensive limitations compared to a CB... and imo this season our biggest problems have been with our CBs being absolute dogshit and our midfield basically being non-existent.

as long as "Defensive limitations" is code for 'a wheelchair bound vegetable with a breath powered wheelchair defends better'

[Lucas]

I know there were some jammy goals tonight but that 5th was sexy stuff.

From the moment Fabinho fucked it, Modric's run through the centre taking two players out the game, Vinicius' perfectly weighted pass to Benzema, and then the main man sitting one of the best 'Keepers in the world down on his ass and having the coolness to finish in the corner with Van Dijk running back in the line.

Even just the sound of it hitting the net.

Absolute chef's kiss.

 

[LFCMike]

I'm not sure how this has turned into slagging Arnold off tonight tbh. Four of the goals Liverpool concede Joe Gomez is poor for. Even the second I'm not sure he should be going back to the keeper there. When he does, Vinicius has started to read it and the ball back to Alisson isn't great either. Alisson should do better though, no doubt.

Gomez looks finished, which is a shame because that season we won the league he was brilliant alongside Van Dijk and looked like he had made that position his own.

[UNORTHODOX]

That third Madrid goal was an absolute disgrace, I can’t get it out of my head!

[Lucas]

I'm not sure how big Liverpool are going to go in the Summer in terms of transfers but it feels like that result tonight hammered home the need to majorly strengthen.

Even if they could manage to bring in a couple, someone like Gvardiol to play with VVD (which also would be brilliant in terms of a natural left footed CB complimenting a right-footed one) and of course, a powerhouse in midfield like Bellingham, that completely lifts this side.

Chuck in someone like that Amrabat too and I don't think they'd be far off what they were. They just don't have it in them to play at the intense level they were initially famed for.

It's easy to suggest players of course and how realistic those three are when competing with other clubs is up for debate, but don't think it's entirely unrealistic to think Liverpool couldn't do it.

Either way, it's a massive Summer for them now other clubs are breathing down their neck in the League.

[Eco]

34 minutes ago, Lucas said:

I know there were some jammy goals tonight but that 5th was sexy stuff.

From the moment Fabinho fucked it, Modric's run through the centre taking two players out the game, Vinicius' perfectly weighted pass to Benzema, and then the main man sitting one of the best 'Keepers in the world down on his ass and having the coolness to finish in the corner with Van Dijk running back in the line.

Even just the sound of it hitting the net.

Absolute chef's kiss.

 

It might get lost due to the scoreline, but I thought Nunez had the sexiest goal tonight.

[Dr. Gonzo]

43 minutes ago, LFCMike said:

I'm not sure how this has turned into slagging Arnold off tonight tbh. Four of the goals Liverpool concede Joe Gomez is poor for. Even the second I'm not sure he should be going back to the keeper there. When he does, Vinicius has started to read it and the ball back to Alisson isn't great either. Alisson should do better though, no doubt.

Gomez looks finished, which is a shame because that season we won the league he was brilliant alongside Van Dijk and looked like he had made that position his own.

Cuz @Devil-Dick Willie loves slagging him off every chance he gets.

For me, I wouldn't be upset if that's Gomez's last ever match for us. Sad how far he's fallen, but he's arguably our worst performer of the season next to Fabinho who's also been abysmal.

[Dr. Gonzo]

28 minutes ago, Lucas said:

I'm not sure how big Liverpool are going to go in the Summer in terms of transfers but it feels like that result tonight hammered home the need to majorly strengthen.

Tbf it wasn't that long ago I was saying, I think we were going to get hammered 5-0. I was only wrong by 2 goals from us that honestly I never would have expected we would have scored. So much of this season before this match has hammered home that we need to strengthen massively. We should have strengthened massively in January, tbf, and while I like Gakpo and I'm sure he'll be a good signing for us in the long run... I do wish we'd have spent some fucking cash on a midfielder.

[Dan+]

I got 12/1 on Real Madrid winning the whole thing after the draw was made. There is simply no side better in this tournament than them. Every year they get written off because of patchy La Liga form but so often they save their best for this. Extraordinary display from an extraordinary side. They're the team to beat for sure.

[Stan]

7 hours ago, Eco said:

It might get lost due to the scoreline, but I thought Nunez had the sexiest goal tonight.

100%.

[Rick]

Trent is poor defensively, that much is clear. Loads of examples of him lacking awareness or looking purely lazy at the back. but we have always been able to keep him in that position because we had elite CB’s and midfielders to cover for him going forward. Obviously that isn’t happening now, so when he is asked to defend more his shortcomings are on show. But tonight wasn’t his fault, it was mostly Gomez. He had his worst ever game for us and it has put a nail in the coffin for me. As shite as Matip has been this season, I’d put him next to Van Dijk until Konate is back. Virgil doesn’t get away Scott free though, his best days are behind him and he has been as shit as anybody else at the back. 

As for Fabinho, well, he barely even looks like a professional footballer nowadays, nevermind champions league level. It’s shocking how far he has fallen in the space of a year, a truly shocking performer for us now. We need to move him on in the summer, because he’s just a liability now. 
 

I thought Klopp’s game management last night was terrible. Brining off Nunez & Gakpo at the 60th minute mark, to bring on two very slow attacking players. Yet our shape didn’t change, so those players were expected to press with the same intensity even though I can run faster. Destroyed any chance of a quick break, which seems to be the only way we can score nowadays. Then waits far too long to substitute Gomez, when the damage is already done. Brings on Milner to do absolutely nothing and Elliott later on when the tie is already gone. An absolute shit show from him along with the rest.
 

The only two people coming away from that game with any credit are Nunez & Bajcetic and possibly Salah for the first half. The rest were a joke. 

 

[LFCMike]

Jota very slow? I mean he's not Nunez quick but he's certainly not slow. I like Nunez but he was barely in the game second half. Just before he came off he should have played Gakpo in but ended up doing too much. No issue with Klopp trying to change it up a bit the way things were going.