LFCMike 3,009 Posted October 20, 2018 Share Posted October 20, 2018 Made hard work of that but can't complain with another win and clean sheet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subscriber RandoEFC+ 7,640 Posted October 20, 2018 Subscriber Share Posted October 20, 2018 I actually quite like Huddersfield but actually they're very very shit. They're organised enough to nick occasional points off middling teams who are having an off day like they did against us, and might have a few inspired home wins but overall can't see what they have to offer that will keep them in the league unless there are three other equally/more piss poor teams, which with Fulham and Newcastles results today does look a possibility to be fair. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucas 3,824 Posted October 20, 2018 Share Posted October 20, 2018 For me, these are the games that will win you the title, or take you close. Not the 3, 4 or 5-0 roll overs. It's the games where it's tight, 1-0 or 2-1 and you need to rely on defence to stay solid and see out the advantage. That is the main difference with Liverpool this year. The flair has been slightly subsided for a bit more grit and steel and I like that. Winning mentality. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LFCMike 3,009 Posted October 20, 2018 Share Posted October 20, 2018 31 minutes ago, Lucas said: For me, these are the games that will win you the title, or take you close. Not the 3, 4 or 5-0 roll overs. It's the games where it's tight, 1-0 or 2-1 and you need to rely on defence to stay solid and see out the advantage. That is the main difference with Liverpool this year. The flair has been slightly subsided for a bit more grit and steel and I like that. Winning mentality. Yep, seeing so many people complain about our attacking performances but it's happened so many times over the last few years where we had to be playing well to win matches and couldn't grind them out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry 1,437 Posted October 21, 2018 Share Posted October 21, 2018 6 hours ago, Lucas said: For me, these are the games that will win you the title, or take you close. Not the 3, 4 or 5-0 roll overs. It's the games where it's tight, 1-0 or 2-1 and you need to rely on defence to stay solid and see out the advantage. That is the main difference with Liverpool this year. The flair has been slightly subsided for a bit more grit and steel and I like that. Winning mentality. True. But its starting to feel like I've been saying that from the first game of the season. Sooner or later it would be nice if we actually played someone off the park. We've been solid but really not that impressive in attack at all bar maybe 1 performance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Gonzo 8,172 Posted October 21, 2018 Share Posted October 21, 2018 15 minutes ago, Harry said: True. But its starting to feel like I've been saying that from the first game of the season. Sooner or later it would be nice if we actually played someone off the park. We've been solid but really not that impressive in attack at all bar maybe 1 performance. Didn't we start the season off with playing West Ham off the park? Granted we didn't look that sharp, but it was still 4-0. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry 1,437 Posted October 21, 2018 Share Posted October 21, 2018 2 hours ago, Dr. Gonzo said: Didn't we start the season off with playing West Ham off the park? Granted we didn't look that sharp, but it was still 4-0. You really feel there has been even one game where our front 3 has shown their true potential? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LFCMike 3,009 Posted October 21, 2018 Share Posted October 21, 2018 I think people are forgetting that we weren't twatting everyone this time last year either. It was only from about November onwards that we started handing out a few hammerings. Difference this season is that we've turned draws and defeats into positive results Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subscriber RandoEFC+ 7,640 Posted October 21, 2018 Subscriber Share Posted October 21, 2018 Liverpool are clearly conserving their energy more this season. It surprises me because it goes against what Klopp believes in and the exciting football that has impressed a lot of neutrals since he took over, but it is clearly the smartest thing to do if they want to compete on 2-3 fronts throughout the season. I just wonder if Klopp will eventually take some criticism for being pragmatic rather than exciting if it continues. He shouldn't, because he should take the approach necessary to give Liverpool the chance of getting some silverware, but there are a lot of weirdos around these days who apparently would rather see their team play exciting but naive football than be a bit more sensible and "boring" at times but win some trophies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subscriber Mel81x+ 3,611 Posted October 21, 2018 Subscriber Share Posted October 21, 2018 1 hour ago, LFCMike said: I think people are forgetting that we weren't twatting everyone this time last year either. It was only from about November onwards that we started handing out a few hammerings. Difference this season is that we've turned draws and defeats into positive results This right here. After our Champions League got underway the team went through some kind of attack metamorphosis. I don't think its very far away personally as the game showed yesterday. Things were going well and the final third is really where the issue lies now. You take the same game a some seasons back and not only would have struggled to grind a result but in some cases our defensive lapses would have cost us games like this too. I still think Allisson needs to sort out his keep and distribute game because it could have gone so horribly wrong for him yesterday but the good news is that once he gets caught out he never resorts to it again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LFCMadLad 2,080 Posted October 21, 2018 Share Posted October 21, 2018 1 hour ago, Mel81x said: This right here. After our Champions League got underway the team went through some kind of attack metamorphosis. I don't think its very far away personally as the game showed yesterday. Things were going well and the final third is really where the issue lies now. You take the same game a some seasons back and not only would have struggled to grind a result but in some cases our defensive lapses would have cost us games like this too. I still think Allisson needs to sort out his keep and distribute game because it could have gone so horribly wrong for him yesterday but the good news is that once he gets caught out he never resorts to it again. Did you see our game against Crystal Palace? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subscriber Mel81x+ 3,611 Posted October 21, 2018 Subscriber Share Posted October 21, 2018 4 minutes ago, LFCMadLad said: Did you see our game against Crystal Palace? I sadly didn't and it isn't a slight against our GK because I think overall he's been fantastic but theres always a risk associated with passing the ball back to him when the defensive line is under pressure and his decision making can sometimes get the better of him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burning Gold 599 Posted October 21, 2018 Share Posted October 21, 2018 14 hours ago, Lucas said: For me, these are the games that will win you the title, or take you close. Not the 3, 4 or 5-0 roll overs. It's the games where it's tight, 1-0 or 2-1 and you need to rely on defence to stay solid and see out the advantage. That is the main difference with Liverpool this year. The flair has been slightly subsided for a bit more grit and steel and I like that. Winning mentality. This kind of thinking leaves you in danger of underestimating the value of putting teams to the sword. Goal difference is the obvious one, and we have seen titles either decided on goal difference or decided by things that've been forced by an overwhelming goal difference advantage. Then there's the psychological impact on the rest of the league - the old '1-0 down in the tunnel' effect - or the extra pressure a big win puts on your rivals. Last but not least, especially for a relatively thin squad with a few injury prone players, it is invaluable to have the liberty to take strain off the legs without worrying about the result, either by taking players off (thereby also giving minutes to fringe squad members) or by easing back for the last 20, 30, even 45 minutes. That has a cumulative effect over the season as well. I'm aware that essentially I'm arguing it's better to win 4-0 than 1-0 while you're saying it's better to win 1-0 than not at all, but the point is I need to see more from a team than just consistently grinding out wins before I consider them title challengers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LFCMadLad 2,080 Posted October 21, 2018 Share Posted October 21, 2018 14 minutes ago, Burning Gold said: This kind of thinking leaves you in danger of underestimating the value of putting teams to the sword. Goal difference is the obvious one, and we have seen titles either decided on goal difference or decided by things that've been forced by an overwhelming goal difference advantage. Then there's the psychological impact on the rest of the league - the old '1-0 down in the tunnel' effect - or the extra pressure a big win puts on your rivals. Last but not least, especially for a relatively thin squad with a few injury prone players, it is invaluable to have the liberty to take strain off the legs without worrying about the result, either by taking players off (thereby also giving minutes to fringe squad members) or by easing back for the last 20, 30, even 45 minutes. That has a cumulative effect over the season as well. I'm aware that essentially I'm arguing it's better to win 4-0 than 1-0 while you're saying it's better to win 1-0 than not at all, but the point is I need to see more from a team than just consistently grinding out wins before I consider them title challengers. What about a team that has conceded 1 goal at home since February. Does that make a title challenging team? I totally get your point btw, but scoring goals isn't really a problem for us. Defensively, we are the best in the league and have been since VVD came in. Based on that I'd say we will be there or thereabouts come may. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Artful Dodger 1,831 Posted October 21, 2018 Share Posted October 21, 2018 Your miles of Manchester city. Cant see past them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LFCMadLad 2,080 Posted October 21, 2018 Share Posted October 21, 2018 Just now, The Artful Dodger said: Your miles of Manchester city. Cant see past them. Me neither, just our luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry 1,437 Posted October 21, 2018 Share Posted October 21, 2018 4 hours ago, RandoEFC said: Liverpool are clearly conserving their energy more this season. It surprises me because it goes against what Klopp believes in and the exciting football that has impressed a lot of neutrals since he took over, but it is clearly the smartest thing to do if they want to compete on 2-3 fronts throughout the season. I just wonder if Klopp will eventually take some criticism for being pragmatic rather than exciting if it continues. He shouldn't, because he should take the approach necessary to give Liverpool the chance of getting some silverware, but there are a lot of weirdos around these days who apparently would rather see their team play exciting but naive football than be a bit more sensible and "boring" at times but win some trophies. We only won yesterday because the ref didn't pay a penalty. Not sure I'd put it down to klopp being more pragmatic in fairly sure he'd habe seen us win 5-0 if he could. Attack just hasn't fired yet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry 1,437 Posted October 21, 2018 Share Posted October 21, 2018 5 hours ago, LFCMike said: I think people are forgetting that we weren't twatting everyone this time last year either. It was only from about November onwards that we started handing out a few hammerings. Difference this season is that we've turned draws and defeats into positive results Its the same established front three though this year. It shouldn't take till November to get our attack back to the level we already were in May. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LFCMike 3,009 Posted October 21, 2018 Share Posted October 21, 2018 15 minutes ago, Harry said: Its the same established front three though this year. It shouldn't take till November to get our attack back to the level we already were in May. I think when you consider they had long hard seasons last season, played at the World Cup, it's not unreasonable. Salah also rushed back from injury too. Someone else mentioned about conserving energy at this stage of the season, I think that's a factor also. I'm enjoying watching this team play with more maturity and being more savvy when they take the lead. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scousermum 57 Posted October 21, 2018 Share Posted October 21, 2018 We played so awful yet we won which I will take. Huddersfield were just as shite as us. Just think there is something missing on our play atm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inverted 1,776 Posted October 21, 2018 Share Posted October 21, 2018 The team seems torn between doing the sensible thing and playing their usual football from last season. Like against Huddersfield, there were so many counter-attacking opportunities wasted because of dithering and hesitation. A smart dominant team like City will normally hold onto the ball and resist the urge to go surging forward again to try and score a quick goal on the break when they're defending a lead. They'll slow the game down and pin the opponent back so they never even get a sniff, and then try and score more goals. Liverpool last season would have accepted the invitation to go streaming forward and make it 2-0, 3-0, and so on. It didn't matter if they kept losing the ball, the game kept going a hundred miles an hour, and the opposition got more chances, because Liverpool would have been out of sight by then anyway. Right now it feels like Liverpool want to be a bit more like City and see games out calmly rather than always banking on building an unassailable lead. But they're in a weird middle-ground where they don't counterattack well enough to kill games off, and they also don't hold onto the ball either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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