17 Aug 2016 10:46:05
Can someone please pass me a headache tablet? . The last few weeks on Twitter have given me countless migraines and the words 'Left Back' are two words I'm absolutely fed up of hearing. I think it would be easier to mention the players we haven't been linked with, every left back in world footballs name has been associated one way or another with LFC. Anyway, I'm going to have my say on what's become a rather mundane, over swelling but yet un-resolved subject for the LFC faithful and hopefully shed some light on the real issues we face at the left back berth.


So what's the problem?

The problem is simple, we don't have a solution and whilst many will back our 'first choice' left back, I'm personally at my wits end with the same old recklessness, lack of awareness and ineffectiveness from our little Spaniard. Alberto Moreno came to Liverpool in the summer of 2014, a deal worth £12 million. A signing by previous manager Brendan Rodgers, with a reputation of getting forward, creating chances and scoring the odd goal Moreno drew comparisons from English analysts to Barcelona's Jordi Alba and looked to be a real coup for LFC at the time although many Sevilla fans were glad to see the back of him. When you sum it up Moreno should be Klopps ideal fullback due to the fact he's always encouraging himself to get in advanced positions so, where's it all going wrong and what's the issue?

Well, when you get forward as much as Moreno does, you're going to leave gaps but this is normal and shouldn't be a massive surprise to any of us. It's all the other things he seems to get totally wrong, that is the problem so I'll explain the main causes for concern/ room for improvement.

The first issue is communication. When Moreno gets forward it's usually a deep midfielders responsibility to monitor that gap and cover it. Let's say the holding player (In this instance we will use Can) has moved up the field into an offensive position, the fullback should stay deep as there's too much exposure for a counter. Moreno unfortunately can't help himself and instead of holding off waiting for Can to get back into position he will burst forward leaving gaps for the opposition to pounce. You could say if we had a holding midfielder who just sits there like the old fashioned sweeper then Moreno would be safe to go forward and attack at will but when your player offers little going forward what's the point? Back to breakdowns in communication, it happens far too often between Moreno and Clyne. They both shouldn't be pushing forward at the same time as it means both fullbacks end high up leaving us short on numbers at the back. I will say, Clyne is just as much at fault in this situation.

The second issue is what I touched up on above, what does Moreno provide in advanced positions? Well, pretty little if i'm being honest. The amount of time he spends up the field I think it's fair to say you'd certainly expect more from him. Rarely is a good ball played into the box, rarely is he seen having a clear crack on goal and the lad can't pass 5 yards let alone 20 yards giving the opposition advantage to counter us down the left hand side when retaining a loose ball or a bad pass.

The third thing is his rashness. There is no excuse when an opposition player has his back to goal in the box for Moreno to dive in. Time and time again we see him make these un-necessary lunges and not looking like learning from it. He will get caught out positionaly from time to time due to the nature of his game and I'd forgive that if he gave something back to the game offensively. He offers nothing at both ends which is what worries me and I'd go as far as saying he's a total liability.

The only other available option we have is James Milner playing left back and whilst it's an odd decision I have to say there is some sense to it. When Wijnaldum plays, lots will be expected from Gini to break deep and join up with the attack. When this happens there will be space in the midfield and having Milner left back means he can drop in there and cover. Also, his second ball into the box is very good so when he is in advanced positions he has it in his locker to put dangerous in-swinging balls into the box.

But for me the perfect formula is a Finnan and Riise combination where one goes forward at will and the other remains firmly defensive. I'd have personally broke the bank for Hector he would've provided the defensive stability which we so desperately need. Failing that we should've got Chilwell a young aspiring fullback with a good reputation and recommended to Klopp via good friend and Huddersfield boss David Wagner. The thing is who will join? Nobody stands out in the academy and long term options are now running thin, fingers crossed Klopp has a backup plan as I feel we can't run into the season without a recognized defensive left back.

1.) 17 Aug 2016
17 Aug 2016 11:30:11
Sorry my paracetamol are left back in the house ;)

2.) 17 Aug 2016
17 Aug 2016 11:30:32
So what you are saying is the holding midfielder might as well play left back all game then? Good, I repeat good footballers know when to utilise space going forward without compromising the team, Moreno has no positional sense whatsoever and is hopeless at defending in all areas, either play him left midfield or get shut, as for Milner at left back, would it not be better to play clynne at left back and Milner right back as he has played there from time to time.

3.) 17 Aug 2016
17 Aug 2016 12:14:55
Moreno is no worse than some of the following

1. Marcelo
2. Danny rose
3. Alves
4. Walker
5. Korolov

They all have a speciality holding player BTW.

4.) 17 Aug 2016
17 Aug 2016 12:20:16
Clyne doesn't get constantly get caught up the pitch when we're being attacked, it's called football intelligence, knowing when to get up the pitch, an positional sense, Moreno lacks both of these. If you full backs have them you don't need a holding midfielder.

5.) 17 Aug 2016
17 Aug 2016 12:27:14
Another issue for me is he can't tackle. That's really worrying.

Humans have the ability to learn but it does seem a very slow process with Moreno. From match performances at least, I have not seen any.

Confidence is a hard thing to judge. I'm sure it is low and that is not helping the situation.

Ultimately, he needs a recongized first teamer in front of him to take the pressure off and allow himself to grow pressure free.

6.) 17 Aug 2016
17 Aug 2016 13:16:21
What team does korolov play for?