Liverpool Banter Archive July 04 2016

04 Jul 2016 21:22:22
Must be honest I think Klopp has so far done well for us in transfer market considering Matip Karius Grujic and Mane for roughly 44 million and with potential sales off Benteke 30 mil, Ibe 10 mil, Markovic 10 mil, Allen 12 mil, Skrtel 5 mil, Luis Alberto 5 mil and Balotelli who ever hell stupid enough take him (China cough), hopefully few extra players if possible Colin weeks and we good go top 4 the aim with no champs or Europa think fairly happy how going so far thoughts reds? YNWA.

04 Jul 2016 21:48:56
Is Colin Weeks a left back?

04 Jul 2016 21:50:30
That was a joke, just to confirm!

04 Jul 2016 21:52:12
Who is paying us £10m for Ibe or Markovic? Or £12m for Allen? You may need to rethink those values.

04 Jul 2016 22:31:48
Way things are going with Wales 12M may end up being short for Allen.

04 Jul 2016 22:57:10
Off course nobody has said any valuation I just presuming what I believe we would get for the players who look possible exits could be more could be less! Just hoping any sales do make we hopefully do address this LB position and certainly defensive mid if Lucas does go which be sad see always reliable when called upon.

05 Jul 2016 01:51:24
Who has said Ibe is going anywhere? I have never been too impressed with him, but he's hardly one to ship out the door like he has no chance.

05 Jul 2016 09:45:37
Why would anyone pay £10 mill each for Ibe and Markovic?

04 Jul 2016 20:07:27
I didn't realise how tall grujic is. Same height as klopp in his pictures. Bit of height won't do our team any harm.

04 Jul 2016 20:56:33
He's 6'4 and in his montages on YouTube he reminds me of fellaini tbh.

04 Jul 2016 20:56:42
Taller than Klopp.

04 Jul 2016 21:04:26
Is he a defensive midfielder?

04 Jul 2016 21:09:10
He reminds me more of Yaya Toure. Not great defensively but deceptively quick, incredibly strong, excellent passing range, very good dribbling skills, and capable of scoring from anywhere.

Just a brilliant young playmaker to be honest, that needs to work on his defensive qualities.

He is similar to Fellaini in one way admittedly, in that he never seems to lose a header even against other big players, and sometimes even when the opposition player has a run on him. He has far more technical ability though and much less elbow history! They don't really play a similar role though. Fellaini is better when he sits high up and is used as a target man so others can feed off knock downs and his good hold up play. Grujic is more likely to be the guy pinging the forward pass than the guy on the end of it. Completely different players, but similar physique.

04 Jul 2016 21:09:48
Nope he can play all the roles and is probably most used as a box to box player but he's often used as fellaini is from goal kicks and long diagonals.

04 Jul 2016 21:20:36
I'll take your word for that Jezza. I've seen extended highlights of him in 3 games and he has always been in midfield in those games. In the you tube highlights I've seen it's harder to gauge but he looked to be flitting in between an attacking midfielder and a central player. I've never seen anything of him as high up the pitch as Fellaini. It's always seemed to me like he drops deeper when his team are on the ball to get involved in build up play.

He certainly has more to his game than Fellaini anyway. I think it would be a waste to literally just use him as a Fellaini/ Carroll route 1 knock down player. He seems to have the quality to really change a game. If he can step up to the next level in a better league, he could potentially force his way into the team next season.

04 Jul 2016 21:32:51
You tube clips ~ yet to see the player you're watchin ever get tackled.

And what's all the 1970's Porno music playin in the background for!

04 Jul 2016 21:35:54
Fellaini is a midfielder Grujic is a midfielder the extra points I raised are tactical eg long balls from goalkicks etc usually our goal kicks are aimed at the full backs or wide midfielders like Milner or lallana in future is expect Grujic to start wide in these situations to be the focal point for the flick on or atleast ball retention.

04 Jul 2016 21:43:39
They are both in the bracket of midfielder, yes. But so are Alonso and Downing. Doesn't mean they are identical if you see what I mean.

But yeah I can see how he could be an asset in that situation. It is unbelievable how many times we lose headers from goal kicks. I think Origi is the only person who won a header from a goal kick last season. Maybe Benteke about twice. Can and Hendo despite both being in excess of 6ft tall, just don't win headers regularly at all. It's probably one of their biggest weaknesses as a partnership actually!

04 Jul 2016 23:43:36
How do you know what 1970's porno music sounds like mickeyboy?

05 Jul 2016 07:21:12
Fellaini is not a footballer. Grujic is hence, the comparison makes no sense to me.

05 Jul 2016 07:26:31
what! There is music too on the Internet?

04 Jul 2016 19:53:31
This transfer season so far, including injuries
Bogdan going out, Karius in, great.
Kolo and skrtel out, matip and Gomez in, great.
Benteke out, Ings in, for our team great.
Mane in for I guess Ibe at this stage.
A bit more trimming, Allen (should go whether we replace him or not) hopefully balo, I'd like Milner out for markovic, but don't see it.
So far so good for me, chilwell in would be nice. Still don't think we need a cm, unless Lucas and Allen leave, still then not exactly thin on the ground with cms. Wouldn't mind Milner leaving, I think lallana has just about done enough to earn a squad place, still think he may have a bit more to offer if he can take instructions on board.

04 Jul 2016 20:04:14
Why Allen out? I prefer him to Henderson. I might get a lot of backlash from that but he's shown his class at the euros if he's given that role. Very rash decision giving Jordan the armband.

04 Jul 2016 20:35:03
Hendo hasn't been fully fit for a while, when he recovers he's twice the player. Doesn't get bullied, quicker, better in the air, his long passing is better, and has drive and passion. Allen isn't a bad player, can make us tick, but all he does is go to the ball turn and play a quick pass, we should be able to do that anyway. Allen often gets bypassed far too easily.

04 Jul 2016 20:42:43
Personally for me Joe Pirlo is a great wee player if you give him time on the ball but for me he struggles against any sort of height or pace. Henderson for me is more robust in all areas of the game, maybe he could score a few more goals. I just wish that people wouldn't rate Henderson on last season when he played while he was clearly injured, i guess that shows what type of man he is. i'm not going to say he is in the top bracket of midfielders but he is a very good player. i'm hoping for a fit Henderson for the whole of next season, then we will see him at his best.

04 Jul 2016 20:44:39
Have to disagree there Davies. Henderson can literally do everything Allen can do but better.

The media keep banging on about how well Allen is playing but if anyone is actually watching him closely he isn't doing that great really.

Against Belgium for example. He conceded possession needlessly for Belgium's goal. Then later on in the game he again conceded possession with no pressure on him and had Aaron Ramsey not handballed it Belgium would've hit Wales on the break again and possibly scored. So not only was Allen responsible directly for the goal (as he also should've closed the ball down), he was also indirectly responsible for Ramsey being banned for the Semi-final.

He had a good game against Russia, but aside from that I think he's just getting hyped up because he is part of a team exceeding expectations.

Not a bad player, but not in the same bracket as Henderson. Hendo actively effects the game in a positive manner when he is on the pitch, and is a glaring miss when he isn't on the pitch.

Allen is just an okay player who doesn't regularly have a negative effect, but also isn't missed when he's not there.

Allen is a better tackler than he is credited for and he works hard to be fair. But on the ball, he is just a metronome. And a sloppy one at that. He is literally just a poor mans Kroos or Modric. He is always available for a pass, but his own passing gets sloppy as soon as he tries to be ambitious. If your ambitious passes fail every other attempt, that's if really an issue, but Allen's fail most of the time. Even with the added time on the ball of international football he is still conceding possession needlessly.

I don't mind if Joe Pirlo stays, but I also don't care if he leaves. And I have to disagree that he is better than Henderson. Just out of interest, what about him as a player do you think makes him superior to Hendo?

04 Jul 2016 21:07:26
think milner done more than lallana last season. i'm not saying keep him but come on?

04 Jul 2016 21:38:04
Scouse John, I'd happily move on Ibe, Lallana, Milner and Markovic. I think they've all disappointed over the last year or two, bit none have been so bad they wouldn't have god options.

I'd rather make room for the likes of Origi, Ojo and Mane to get more pitch time. Get some actual pace, power and directness out wide and up top. I know Ibe and Markovic have that to some extent, but they just aren't as good as the options we have now in my opinion. With the guile and craft of (hopefully) Coutinho, Firmino and Sturridge we have a lot of variation in attack. Not to mention Ings who is not lightning quick, ruthlessly strong or incredibly skillful, but is just a good poacher and a phenomenally hard worker.

I actually really like our attacking options for next season. They are exciting with Mane coming in, Ings being fit and Ojo knocking on the door! I see no need to keep players like Milner and Lallana as high wage squad players, and I see no need to ruin Ibe and Markovic's careers by keeping them just to stockpile players when they will be so far down the pecking order they'd need an injury crisis to get on the bench.

They aren't good enough for us but could be the first name on the team sheet elsewhere. Derby for example would probably jump at the chance to take Ibe on and Feberbache we know are very keen to land Markovic. Lallana would be a star at Bournemouth for example, and Milner could be a real leader for a team like Palace, Watford or even returning to Newcastle to help stop their rot.

We need to stop holding on to players like we have done to Ilori, Allen, Alberto and Teixeira. They all had bright futures until we stepped in and let them rot in the reserves. It's nice to have options, but having about 10 players for a maximum of 3 or 4 positions is just needless. It is not good for the players or the club.

04 Jul 2016 21:57:21
Agree with pretty much everything you've said MK. Your arguments are always fair and reasoned so respect to you.

04 Jul 2016 21:59:17
Karius in, Mingo on the bench and Bogdan out. Fixed it for ya, OP.

04 Jul 2016 21:59:20
Grujic and Can will be our new MF partnership, henderson used as back up or maybe hendo just in front of them in a mf 3, either way i'm happy with transfers so far. Can only see one more signing coming in and that's chilwell then that's it for this window.

04 Jul 2016 22:35:43
Thanks Ghandi. I loved your quote btw. An I for an I makes II.

04 Jul 2016 23:48:53
MK my point was Milner was more productive than lallana last season. It's only our opinions if they are good enough or not I think Jurgen likes em both.

05 Jul 2016 07:42:03
With Allen, if he was that good. There wouldn't be a discussion about him going.
For his own future I think e should go. He does have the quality to be a 1st teamed, just not at Liverpool. We also have Stewart and Brannagan hopefully going to push on this season coming.

04 Jul 2016 19:07:53
I really enjoy Ron keague's posts, always full of positivity but I have to say also like just reading others opinions and take on things lfc related, so to all the regular posters thank you for sharing and keep going.

04 Jul 2016 19:18:42
So do i KYB1. His medication is working well.

04 Jul 2016 19:34:02
Yes Big up Ron he is D man. I am on a stag do in Wales several drinks down in case this comes back to haunt me. Nah Ron you be good!

04 Jul 2016 21:14:25
We used to dislike Ron when Brendan was in charge.

04 Jul 2016 21:16:19
Ron be smelling flowers at Armageddon.

- Krishna.

04 Jul 2016 21:22:13
Cheers lads, I know I'm not everyone's cup of tea and annoy some people. We're all different and it's what makes the site great. The great variety of opinions, the ability to pull together when someone needs a break and of course all the eds. 😉.

04 Jul 2016 21:26:05
Haha Yeh I like Ron. Bit of a dreamer but loves the club Keep it up mate, just hope your as vocal on the kop as you are on here 😂.

04 Jul 2016 21:32:04
As well as his great use of the emoji! 😉.

04 Jul 2016 22:01:25
Ron is the best poster on here, he always makes sense. I sometimes wonder is he one of the Eds.

04 Jul 2016 17:04:22
If we get £30m+ for Benteke, it will make me feel a lot better about the Mane fee.
Also I'm hoping we can shift Balo etc before spending again. Unless it's a left back, desperate for one, someone who can defend for a start.

04 Jul 2016 17:22:38
Didn't we use to dilute transfer fees when's Rodgers spent a fortune on players but we would say well atleast we got this amount of suarez and sterling . How much we sell players for should have no correlation to how much we spend on players.

04 Jul 2016 17:37:36
I agree with your sentiment Al. However it is naive to believe it has absolutely no correlation.

The market is bloated right now due to a cash influx into the Premier League so everyone is paying more an receiving more because of that. As well as this, if you sell players for more, teams know you have cash and ramp up the asking price.

04 Jul 2016 18:59:15
Sort of. But Selling benteke isn't the same as, say if we sold Phil for example.
30 odd million for a surplus Benteke is excellent, 50 odd million for our best player is pointless.

04 Jul 2016 22:01:59
Spot on, Dbol.

04 Jul 2016 14:34:07
Any agree that it's bad times if Liverpool football club are messing around over a couple million with this zeilinski and can't afford to go out and buy a quality left back.

If we start the season with Moreno at lb then it's a bloody joke.

04 Jul 2016 14:48:53
Calm Down. Calm Down.

04 Jul 2016 14:54:51
Napoli are in for him now which youve probably heard. I get what your saying on Moreno and he cost us last season but there's still a glimmering light for me that he will come good. Chilwell should go through as per ed002.

04 Jul 2016 15:37:27
It's bloomin GREAT TIMES 😎
We have a manager with pedigree, we have a few really talented youngsters coming through. At times last season we recreated the famous Anfield atmosphere.
Our team is on an upward curve. Creating and scoring more and defending better. Some longterm injuries are recovering. Most of our players are already back from their respective tournaments unscathed.
You don't win the league in the transfer window. You win it with hard work in training and application on match day.
Have a little faith, Klopp knows what he's doing.

OH WHEN THE REDS GO MARCHIN IN!

04 Jul 2016 15:49:33
"You don't win the league in the transfer window. You win it with hard work in training and application on match day. "

From now on, you will be Sir Ron Keague. Period.

04 Jul 2016 16:01:42
Zteatea, so because we haven't bought who is in my view, a squad player, shows that these are bad times for LFC. You must have slept through the period where we signed, Matip, one if the best CBs in Germany. Karius, best gk in the Bundesliga after Neuer. Grujic, chased by CL clubs and Mane, who is the exact player we need on the wings and I guess with all these plus Origi, Can, Firmino and Chilwell who is highly rated, these are badvtimes for us. Eith dupoorters like you bsdhing LFC, who needs mancs and bitters?

04 Jul 2016 16:11:11
I dub thee, SIR RONALD.

04 Jul 2016 16:51:58
Dont agree Ron sorry, hard work will get you so far but not all the way, we have some ok young players but when given the chance they need to be ruthless, i personally don't see it as ours are treated like 12 year olds and not men on the wage bill like everyone else
I really really hope we have some break through but all this play the fantastic under 21's has to stop, we heap too much pressure on them and most of them just won't make the grade, sorry but its a hard fact
We all know in an idealistic world wed win the league with all our youth players but this is 2016 and not Roy of the Rovers, let's sign the correct players, trim the squad and hope Klopp can deliver top four.

04 Jul 2016 17:02:06
I really think we will be fine this year. I guess some fans saw city, united and chelsea signing some good players and fear for us. let's put things into this perspective. Fit sturridge, cou and firmino would walk into any side in England, respect to Zlatan but Dani will show who the boss is this season. If Hendo and Can for a good compact partnership and Matip adapts quickly we are right there if not above. We will need some "luck" but with no european footie we will give everyone a game you can be sure about that! We are not aware that we already have some class players all we need is a momentum!
YNWA.

04 Jul 2016 17:36:48
I guess "you win nothing with kids" eh Richie? 😉.

04 Jul 2016 18:02:29
Yeah that Leicester team will tell you something different there Richie. No disrespect but hardly a team of worldies.

04 Jul 2016 18:37:37
JQLFC96 Sorry but they can't be that bad as most of the club's in the PL have chased most their players this window, we're wanting to sign a kid of theirs who didn't play a league game, they where unknowns but to say they weren't world class is a touch disrespectful. I'm not expecting anything yet, let's just see what shape were in come August. If we can scrape into the Europe League and at least have some European Football to offer next window and get more of our firs choice targets. I believe we'll get there but a big change will take a while in my opinion.

04 Jul 2016 18:50:24
I expect a title challenge next season from LFC, no doubt in my mind😎.

Cheers Tj and Indian Buzzer 😉.

04 Jul 2016 18:57:03
Is Gomez back fit? He was excellent before he got injured. I think people have forgotten about him. He will be a centre back but if we do not buy a specialist full back, he will keep moreno on the bench.

04 Jul 2016 13:24:25
Hi Eds, Bit of a different question that the usual transfers. Which youngsters/ players do you think our club has really messed up on that could've gone onto big things. I bring in this because I look back at our youth graduations over the last decade and it has been poor. I would really love us to develop a local player that can take the PL by storm again.

{Ed001's Note - tough question, there are so many to choose from. Probably Rossiter I would have to say of the recent ones.}

04 Jul 2016 14:00:43
I think I'm going to go with Wisdom.

Captain of the England U21's, made his debut out of position at about 19 years old and looked solid.

So what does Brendan do? Continue to play Johnson the next season despite his best efforts to cost us the title, then sign Clyne. Neither of which are really better footballers than Wisdom. Wisdom wasn't ready to play centre back, but he was filling in very well at right back and that is the way young centre backs generally break into the first team. But then just to rub salt into the wounds Brendan sends him on loan to work under Pulis and Neil in consecutive seasons.

I genuinely believe Wisdom could've potentially been a candidate for Liverpool captain one day if he had been utilised properly and not sent to work with dinosaurs who pick their teams based on who is 6ft3+, has the worst criminal record, or can shirt pull with the post pounds per square inch! As it happens though, he has missed 2 whole years of development and has regressed under the violent and boring tactics of his loan bosses. Such a shame.

04 Jul 2016 15:11:11
You seriously think Wisdom is as good as Clyne?

04 Jul 2016 15:45:25
Love the Clyne criticism. Wisdom and Clyne comparisons hahahahaha.

04 Jul 2016 15:50:55
Wisdom would have made a decent squad player. Regular first teamer? No way. Neither should Clyne.

04 Jul 2016 16:07:57
At the moment, my fear is that Flanno is going to join that list in the near future, but hoping not. Hoping he is injury-free this season to get a chance to impress Klopp and be a first team player for years to come. A Full-back who knows how to defend, rare cases these days. Just hope he improves his attacking side because that is what Klopp likes in his system.

04 Jul 2016 16:16:12
Totti, there are NO good right or left fullbacks in England anymore as Clyne and Walker are the best of the worst especially Walker, who was hopeless at the Euros. CLyne is not as good as you think he is and if you want to have visual evidence of this, go watch the full City game of last season at the Etihad and you will see for yourself. And believe me, there are many other games like that. Wisdom is better on the ball, a better passer and a better one on one defender than he is. because BR messed him about and lied to him about getting a chance yet sent him out to Norwich doesn't change a thing.

04 Jul 2016 16:14:54
I still think Wisdom is better than Clyne even now. I like Clyne because he works hard on the pitch and never misses a game through lack of fitness or injury. So his attitude and application must be impeccable. He can also really hit a ball!

But his crossing is inconsistent, he cannot pass to a team mate, has a terrible first touch, and he doesn't know how to time his forward runs. He is also completely incapable of tackling someone head on when they run at him. When he is rushing back or across to cover the gap he himself left, he is pretty good in the slide tackle but if he was in position it wouldn't be necessary. His marking in the box is awful. I know he isn't tall so I don't expect him to be aerially dominating. But he lost headers last year to wingers just as small as him such as our new lad Mane! He doesn't even make an effort to put the attacker off as they head it.

Clyne is certainly not as much of an issue as Moreno, Mignolet or Skrtel. But his lack of defensive acumen is still damaging. Is he a priority to replace? Not really because Flanagan is also better than him.

Wisdom is a far superior passer of the ball to Clyne though, as well as a far better defender. The only things Wisdom is behind Clyne with is pace (slightly), shooting and crossing.

You should watch some of Wisdom for our u21's, England youth, or even his loan in Derby. He showed signs that he could've been the leader our defence still needs today.

Sadly he just never got the chance to kick on and now he has fallen behind. I really hope he gets a move to a good side such as Leicester. He'd be an ideal long term replacement for the aging Wes Morgan.

I think a lot of people massively under rate Wisdom's ability on the ball because of his physique, and just assume that because he is only 6ft1 he isn't good in the air.

If you think Clyne is better, fair enough. Who am I to say you're wrong. But in my humble opinion, Flanagan and Wisdom are both better players.

04 Jul 2016 16:19:50
The problem with rossiter was that he never grew that's all. He could've got round that by being fit constantly and learning the game unfortunately he spent far too long on the treatment table to actually learn the game and during that time hendo became captain we bought can who's done very very well then grujic who's months older yet has played 50+ top flight games, club captain, international call ups and he's about a foot taller.

{Ed001's Note - the problem was poor training made him unfit, which caused injuries. Nothing to do with height.}

04 Jul 2016 17:12:08
Clyne was brilliant against Slovakia in the euros. I have high hopes he'll relocate that for the Reds next season.

04 Jul 2016 17:13:35
Jezza Kyle, are you Tony Pulis? :P.

04 Jul 2016 17:48:53
Flanno.

04 Jul 2016 18:46:28
MKSCOUSER I have to agree with others here as Wisdom looked destined to be another squad player and no better. I do agree that poor loans didn't help him but I saw no glimpses of quality enough to warrant the future captain monicker.

04 Jul 2016 19:09:37
Martin Kelly looked like he would become a beast for us. Really thought he'd be the Carragher successor after a few years learning his trade at right back before settling into the middle. That injury wrecked his momentum horribly.

04 Jul 2016 21:05:10
I'm looking forward to seeing Ayala playing for boro this season.

04 Jul 2016 13:12:07
Afternoon Eds
There is hardly any hope of the club even considering giving Balotelli a squad number for the coming season, regardless of his most recent comments "Ball D'Or " etc or even if he has an incredible preseason surly the club has learnt by now that he is a disruption to all those around him and a complete waste of space the biggest problem will be getting rid of him as nobody wants him even for free!

04 Jul 2016 13:06:13
Do you think Balotelli will be given another chance, even though he's had far too many already?

04 Jul 2016 16:20:34
Why should he get a chance?

04 Jul 2016 11:38:51
As Liverpool Fans do you think we should be worried about our signings? Now not for a second am I having a dig at Klopp, I think majority of the business done is decent other than Mane which has split opinions of a few of us. But players like Chilwell, Zielinski, Dahoud to name a few. Are these really the big mentality players, the match winners Liverpool Football Club should be targeting. I know there's the case of we can only sign who's available, it just seems the the board aren't looking at the top end of the players who are 'available'. To me it always seems we pay 'big player money' for players who wouldn't seem out of place in a team like Everton. Maybe it's arrogance or ignorance I just don't see the players FSG are targeting are good enough to push us any higher up the table than we already are, almost as if they are content with 7,6 and 5th places. Eds, I'm sorry if this post angers you, but it's just my opinion.

{Ed002's Note - FSG are not picking the players.}

04 Jul 2016 12:10:32
I know you mention big mentality players etc. But people are moaning about Chilwell for being a 19 year old with minimal Championship/ cup experience. Whilst at the same time they a bemoaning us for missing out on the 18 year old Delle Alli who had minimal Npower League 1 experience.

Sometimes, a young and fearless player can be a brilliant help. Look at Flanagan in the 13/ 14 season. He didn't even look phased by being thrown in and was actually our best defensive player that season by a long distance. Although he was only competing with Johnson, Cissokho, Skrtel, Mignolet, an out of position Gerrard, and an injury prone rotational duo of Agger and Sakho!

Still though, never doubt what a young player can do.

Ziekinski us about the same age as what Alonso, Torres, Reina and Mascherano were when we signed them. So I don't see any experience issues there anyway.

I can see why you are worried. We are signing young lads seemingly with more potential than current ability, whilst United bring in a born winner like Ibra. Don't fear though buddy. Keep the faith and I am sure we can do well.

Karius, Matip, Chilwell, Grujic, Zielinski and Mane would (for me personally) be a good summer as long as we can hold on to at least 2 of Sturridge, Coutinho and Firmino. Losing 2 or 3 of those players though would admittedly get me concerned.

Tough mentality is not linked to age. Watch Portugal and you'll see Renato Sanches playing out of his skin at 18. Meanwhile the 31 (? ) year old Ronaldo is missing penalties and has 2 goals in about 50 shots! There is no secret formula to buying winners and leaders. It is entirely down to the individual.

04 Jul 2016 12:17:16
What is big money these days? If Klopp wants a player, fair play to the owners for stumping up the money. We don't ALWAYS pay big money either we have paid little for some top players and average amounts for good players too. Coutinhio, Sturridge, Can, Toure, Matip Ings. could go on.

04 Jul 2016 12:22:27
You've got to trust the manager to build something and for that you need a solid foundation. It's no good buying Messi and putting him in York City's team.
Klopp is selecting the players, he needs a chance to do it his way.
Look at Leicester and Spurs signings last season. Hardly world beaters but they were the top 2.

04 Jul 2016 12:39:09
@MK, @Ron both speaking a lot of sense there boys, I agree. We all wanted manager to come in and change things. Let's give him a chance to do it. For gods sake, at least one transfer window. Otherwise what hoe have we got? I know a lot of us are nervous; I'm nervous too! We just need to trust the club to get it right.

04 Jul 2016 12:42:32
I'm not fussed about a washed up flat track bully like Ibrahimovic, but if they signed someone like Pogba, then I would worry, as it is I still think we are very lightweight in center midfield and we have to address that as teams ran through us like a knife through butter.

04 Jul 2016 13:02:42
Ron Keague totally agree with your comment altho I'm pretty sure Arsenal finished second and Spurs third?!

04 Jul 2016 13:45:07
I see the majority of York fans disagreeing with you Ron.

04 Jul 2016 13:45:51
Good OP. It is normal to be anxious with the signings.

We all need to recognize that FSG transfer policy is mainly dependent on buying Potentail players and this season isn't different either.

We have had odd finished buys mainly 1 player per season and it seems this season it is Mane.

We also need to realize that we no longer offer CL or EL and so are not attractive for established stars but good place for potential players to prove their mettle and earn a big money move.

Cheers.

04 Jul 2016 15:15:01
Well spotted Wolfbagger 👌
Nice one Annie 😄.

04 Jul 2016 15:23:15
Sam what's is Chelsea doing no cl or el . It's doesn't matter who the mangers is the transfer policy will naver change this team has finish 7th and 8th other two season. Where's the proof it's going to be different this year . Ever team in the league got money will be lucky to finish 10th . One bad injury to Sturridge and are season over.

04 Jul 2016 15:42:23
Come on Reus, don't be a doubter 😉.

04 Jul 2016 16:30:26
With fans like Sami and Reus, who needs haters from other clubs? Klopp doesn't sign big nsmeplsyers. He creates them like he did Lewandowski, Goetze, Subotic, Sahin, and the lot. That record is amazing and if he can replicate that for us then I'll be chuffed. If you both want a manager to get big name players like a washed up Zlatan, then I suggest you get enuff signatures for a referendum to get him sacked cis that won't happen under his watch.

04 Jul 2016 17:50:38
@redohio, I love that, and totally agree, but not just Klopp i feel, Liverpool rarely ever buy the "marquee" signings that soo many fans crave. And on the odd occasion we have done so, they have been flops. Even Suarez wasnt ever considered to do as well as he would do, we all felt he would be a good addition, but never the superstar he would become. I would say Torres was the only player who we brought in who was considered at the time a real susperstar before to join the club. We always made susperstars but never bought them, rarely we ever did. You can be sure that if we bought a player who was a "marquee signing" they would be flops that would cost us 20-30 milion. I think we could argue Benteke falls into this category couldn't we? Who would have said that Coutinho was a marquee signing? he was an 8 million unknown who was not too amazing for Inter, look at him now. I love the fact we normally get players who are not so well known, because i feel takes a tiny bit of pressure off them. When we buy big players for big money, nearly always there is massive pressure on them, and they fail to live up to their valuations.

Here is a crazy thought, why don't we for a change get behind the players, and give them a real chance to show us what they are capable of. Trust in the manager, and get behind the team instead of slating them at every chance, let's not forget, they are humans too, and normally they are still children moving to a new country, and it is impossible be amazing 100% of the time. I can remember a few people on here slating Firmino and saying he was useless and another awful signing by brendan, until Klopp came in and now he is a fan favourite. let's think before we put any player down. If we are to be successful like we all want, then we can actually support the team the manager and the players, doesn't mean we can't voice our opinions, but we can do so with understanding and allowing the players to settle into a new club and country.

YNWA.

05 Jul 2016 09:39:44
Can I have Ruben Neves please. He is a cross breed between Alonso and Gerrard. Absolutely brilliant player would become the darling of Kop.

04 Jul 2016 09:16:15
Morning,
Just would like to get a feeling of where we are with these three players Dahoud, lucas from psg and do you think klopp will give markovic a look over in preseason or is his flight booked elsewhere?
Thanks eds.

{Ed002's Note - Try the search engine.}

04 Jul 2016 08:35:12
The Iceland viking chant is overrated! It's like a good sneeze that builds up and up and then withers into nothing!

04 Jul 2016 10:19:14
sour grapes Nick?

04 Jul 2016 10:41:20
Any chant that bonds fans and a team that closely is underrated in my opinion.

Maybe some International sides should look to connect more with their fans to realise what playing for their country really means.

04 Jul 2016 10:44:20
Ye your right nick, not as good as rule britannia is it or the equally unforgettable en-ga-land en-ga-land.

Posts like this merely reaffirm why I hate England and it's supporters so much.

{Ed001's Note - isn't Nick an Aussie?}

04 Jul 2016 12:11:17
It's good in the sense that it bonds the fans and team, but overrated in the entertainment value. The Will Griggs chant is far better. The viking chant just builds up and up but then just falters into a little back-slapping cheer at the end.

I have absolutely no grudge against Iceland. Lol.

04 Jul 2016 12:51:23
Is he ed001? If he is a Cork hat wearer, then apologies nick. Still good to have a dig at England and there fans, haha.

04 Jul 2016 10:26:16
Sour grapes about what? I was supporting Iceland.

It's the most anti-climactic chant. Builds up and up and fizzles out into nothing.

04 Jul 2016 13:07:41
Yeah I am indeed Aussie. Apology accepted.

04 Jul 2016 15:46:38
It's a great chant and it looks top.

04 Jul 2016 16:32:21
Everyone loves the chant except you Nick. I wonder why?

05 Jul 2016 00:46:12
Because they love Iceland and hence will applaud anything to do with Iceland.

03 Jul 2016 23:52:20
Question, banter, do we really need another centre mid? Actually I'll rephrase that, do we really need another CM that is of less quality to our two starters we currently have (Can and Hendo)?

I'm referring to the likes of Zielinski.

We play 2 in CM, 3 attacking mids (couts, firmino and Mané/ lallana and a striker.

So by playing to in CM we already have Can, Hendo, Lucas, Milner, Stewart and Allen oh and now Grujic.

That's 7 players for 2 positions.

Sell Allen and buy Zielinski? What's the point In buying players like this for the bench or more so a number of players.

04 Jul 2016 00:33:25
Thank you! I've been saying that all along. The purchase of mane most likely pushed firmino or couts into the midfield anyway. I wouldn't be upset if we failed to sign zielinski. Now if we were going after a solid CDM better than Lucas I would be happy, I'm also perfectly happy with Hendo and Can.

04 Jul 2016 00:37:20
Maybe more players from that list are going to leave?

04 Jul 2016 00:54:01
Not saying Hendo and Can are not good players, but how we could possibly say that Zielinski is of less quality?

And, whenever a manager is looking to add a certain player, I'm sure he knows/ hopes that that player would add a certain something that he wants.

04 Jul 2016 01:46:28
I really don't care whether we sign Zielinski or not.

04 Jul 2016 01:46:55
You have to think how many CM we need through a season, maybe 3 maybe 4. Wihtin the squad will Z be better than the alternatives if either or both of Henderson and Can cannot start a game? I believe any additions needs to be better than average squad member to improve the squad and for Klopp to believe he can train to improve them as players. If all the manager does it buy better players all the time, he is only doing half a job.

04 Jul 2016 01:54:49
Don't forget Brannagan in cm and Ojo as am.

04 Jul 2016 03:07:47
I think Hendo and Can are perfect team for a two CM setup, my only concern is if one gets a Long term injury (or maybe Hendo hasn't fully healed), then while we have credible backups, there aren't any direct challengers IMO

- Lucas is the best of the bunch but not as mobile as he once was and can't really play the same box to box role as Can or Hendo
- Milner shouldn't play in midfield
- Stewart would be my next best pick, and although while he's solid, you wouldn't put him in the same class as Can or Hendo yet
- Grujic I have high hopes for but untested in PL
- Allen is not a deep lying midfielder and defensively suspect at DM
- Brannagan can play there but also untested

Having said that I'm not sure Zielinski is anything like Can or Hendo in style so don't see him as the solution for the deeper role either, he's more like an Allen player, sitting further forward and transitioning play from Defence into Attack

I would like to see us stick with Stewart, Lucas, Brannagan and Grujic, see how they get on and save the Zielinski money for potentially buying in a high quality deep midfielder if the youngsters struggle to challenge.

04 Jul 2016 05:01:58
LIke many, i simply do not understand the Zielinski interest either. The same with Dahoud. These two young players got a chance to prove themselves and hence are being courted by multiple teams. Why not give Brannagan and Grujic extended runs in the first team and see what they can do before wasting money on more midfielders? Maybe what we already have is better than what we are trying to sign.

04 Jul 2016 06:49:39
Hendo and Can and lucas won't really get us anywhere. Hendo is not what he was and unfortunately he won't return to what he was in 2013. that is the unfortunate nature of his injury and i can bet on it that it will be impossible for him to play a full season with his injury. Lucas is all positioning and intelligence but he can be ran ragged owing to his slow pace. emre Can has potential but he needs one season more to really develop his game. Allen could be an answer but he doesn't do what he does for wales for us. Brannagan has to start next season or i am afraid we will loose him. grujic i have not seen at all so cannot comment. I think to add another midfielder or two, we have to sell allen and lucas atleast.
as for the players we are linked with i simply don't get it. especially at the money we will have to pay for them. we already have had one overpriced signing in Mane. i feel unless its someone that will absolutely add to our current team there is no point in spending money, i rather buy an unknown talent from an unknown nation to add to squad numbers and bench rather than fork out money on likes of zielenski or dahaoud. ( they have just one good season under their belt) . also we are just going to play two in midfield, if coutinho or firmino are not leaving, it will be
4-2-3-1 and i think we have suffiecient midfielders even after selling allen and lucas to fight for those two positions.

04 Jul 2016 07:39:37
If we would of bought mane 2 seasons ago for £10 million you be saying why have we bought him he's not better than .? If we buy any player that you actually like an they start slow you say they need a season to settle? So now we have midfielders like Lucas Milner Allen who say not good an hendo with his injury plus a couple of kids who may wilt under the stick they will get if beat by the likes of Stoke Everton etc. So instead of being downhearted maybe you can believe someone at the club knows what he's doing? Maybe that person is thinking we can buy now for next season because with no Europe we can have a full year to integrate these players without any pressure before they replace the players you think are not good enough? Think before you post folks. It takes time to sort the wheat from the chaff!

04 Jul 2016 07:52:01
Anyone notice the non existent midfield when the pressure was on? We finished 8th, how on earth anyone can compare players to Zielinski when they've never seen him play is beyond me, give Klopps signings a chance he gets paid to manage the club so let him get on with it,
Supporting our own players is fine but let's not wear the rose tinted, we need a change as its all gotten stale, Klopp will do that and not have sentiment about it for which i'm personally glad.

04 Jul 2016 08:45:03
My 2 pence.

Milner is not good enough in midfield. As a winger he is okay.

Lucas' legs are gone after recurring injuries and now plays better as a centre back.

Can is still young.

Henderson is our best midfielder by some distance, but after major injury concerns he cannot be relied on just yet.

Allen is still glaringly average, despite a good Euros. Don't judge players on one tournament. Lest we forget El Hadj Diouf! Allen should go to Spain or Italy were his patient possession football is more suited.

Stewart is still inexperienced at this level.

Chirivella, Grujic and Brannagan are still u21's.

So are we really as overstocked as people are saying?

I think we are good regarding box to box players and holding midfielders. But how many of those listed are creative, playmaker types? Grujic and Brannagan maybe? But they are both 20 years old.

Zielinski at 22 is a slightly more senior player of a kind we currently do not have. I would not rule out a 3 man midfield just yet either.

04 Jul 2016 11:02:55
How do you know Klopp doesn't want a 4-3-3? Like MK says don't rule it out. We have v mobile and interchangeable attacking players now. playing a 3 in midfield would protect us more considering our cms are box to box. Firmino did v well for us up top last season. Wouldn't be surprised to see him mane and Phil as a fluid attacking 3.

04 Jul 2016 11:29:00
Personally I see a few more in that list leaving. Lucas, Allen and even possibly Stewart/ Brannagan (loan) will all probably leave to some capacity leaving us with hendo, can, Milner, grujic and one of Brannagan or Stewart in the middle. Now with Milner, I personally would never want to see him played in the middle again and would rather just utilise him when required formation. So that would trim the midfield down and is in need of quality, that much is certain as last season was testament to that. Whether it's a more defensive minded midfielder or a more attacking minded midfielder, we need him. I just think zielinski, from what I've seen, doesn't add that quality that we need in the first team. He is a forward thinking player and will try to initiate attacks and create things, it's just, the games I have seen him in, he struggles with that and his stats don't do him much justice either, they aren't much better than hendo, even in a injury hit season, they aren't bad, they are just average.

So although I agree, that I don't think we should go for zielinski and I wouldn't be upset if we missed out on him, I do think we need that sort of player, or a defensive minded one, allowing can and Henderson to add to the attack. Our real problem wasn't scoring last season, it was conceding.

04 Jul 2016 12:16:29
Just guessing klopp has given this more thought than any of you so if he wants a specific player I'm sure he has a role in mind for him ( and would consider him better than what we have or has more potential) . Surely he can't do any worse than buying Markovic and playing him as a wing back, lambert and Dropping him when he scored or Luis Alberto who barely got a look in before being loaned out. ( there's probably another 10 I could add to that list)

05 Jul 2016 09:43:02
We had more or less the same team except a 19 year teenager and our midfield was cut wide open by teams often. Not sure what people think of Klopp. We need a one world class Midfileder positionally sound and disciplined.

05 Jul 2016 09:23:02
It's not about the numbers and it's shame we have 7 players for 2-3 positions. Are they enough to get us into top 3? Absolutely NOT in my eyes. We had more or less the same team except Grujic and I have seen players like imbula and Sissokho ran past our midfield. We also look flat footed when Coutinho doesn't play ( No creativity either)
Can looks promising but he only turns up when he wants. Henderson would spend more games on the sideline next season than on the pitch.
Don't shoot me down but a game is won or lost in the middle and we have lost far too many games last season.

Bring one world class midfielder positionally sound and disciplined and you are good to go ( I don't know who goes out the door ot to the bench )

Cheers.