Football 2010-2011

[worm]

Liverpool 6th, Sunderland 7th. Sunderland defo won't get 6th now.

Edited February 7, 2011 by worm

[eFestivals]

We were always going to drop behind over Febuary and March because we have much harder fixtures, though it has come a little sooner than expected. We've got Liverpool at home and an easy run to come in April and May.

We look much better than Liverpool from an attacking perspective, but we're desperately missing Cattermole and a fighting midfield. I'm still not convinced that Liverpool have a good side, they are just in the first stages of a management take over - be hard to beat.

I expected S'land to win on Saturday and L'pool to lose yesterday - but still thought they'd end up above you. With 6 points in Liverpool's favour I didn't expect them to have today, I'm now sure they'll finish above S'land.

Liverpool are lacking a cutting edge up front for scoring - until Betty and Mavis are playing, anyway - but are proving to be solid at the back. And while they're short of people to put the ball in the net they're still strong going forwards so are going to create enough chances in most games to get a goal or two.

I'm not convinced Liverpool have a good side - but I'm convinced that they have a good enough side to finish above Sunderland.

And it's f**k all to do with players playing better to impress a new manager - it's FAR more than that. The whole system for how they play has been changed.

[Benj]

My missus - the Ugly Betty fan, not a Liverpool fan - came up with Betty.

And every Betty needs a Carroll Mavis.

[Steve P]

At present Kennys point average is pretty much identical to ferguson, if my mathematic skills havent failed me. However considering liverpool have played only 1 team in the top 8 during that period, I think he may struggle to sustain it. Hope im wrong as it would be great to see liverpool as a force again and have a genuine 5 team title race next season.

[worm]

I'm not convinced Liverpool have a good side - but I'm convinced that they have a good enough side to finish above Sunderland.

[ampersand]

RS?

[Benj]

RS?

[eFestivals]

I still don't get the Mavis thing though, is she in Ugly Betty too??

To me, if there's someone called Betty around there's likely to be a mate of hers called Mavis. Maybe it's something I've got from Corrie, I dunno.

But it seems particularly appropriate to do it when Betty's mate is called 'Carol' (or more precisely, Carroll). So Carroll has become Mavis, in my house at least.

[worm]

To me, if there's someone called Betty around there's likely to be a mate of hers called Mavis. Maybe it's something I've got from Corrie, I dunno.

But it seems particularly appropriate to do it when Betty's mate is called 'Carol' (or more precisely, Carroll). So Carroll has become Mavis, in my house at least.

[TheGayTent]

I'm fed up with Birmingham

[TheGayTent]

Oh, and it's not big and it certainly isn't clever.

[eFestivals]

You'll need a good side to finish above Sunderland chief.

nah, not really. A good side would have 50 points or more by now. There's not really any good sides this year.

That's not what I suggested. I said that what we're seeing is a very succsessful integration of stage one of a standard process in football management designed to stop the rot, which is to make your team hard to beat. They are doing this very well and picking up some extras on the way, but their fortune will run out.

You've not seen any games since Dalglish took charge, have you?

Dalglish has done much more than just make them hard to beat, he's completely changed everything about them. It's blindingly obvious that he has very strong ideas about what they should be doing and how they should do it.

I had very big doubts about how successful that would be against a much better team such as Chelsea, but not only did they stop Chelsea getting in to the box yesterday they also managed to keep up their attacking pressure to a more than decent standard.

I'm not saying that other teams won't find a way around what they're doing - they're limited by the standard of their players - but each games is proving a little more that Dalglish is a top manager who knows how to get the best out of what he has. Bruce is a million miles from showing he has the same skill as a manager.

[eFestivals]

Getting ahead of yourself somewhat here. There's still a massive rebuilding job to do at Liverpool this summer which is going to require a lot of investment. The depth of the squad is something that has to be addressed, as does how they're going to replace Carragher and Gerrard, as they're nearing the end of their careers. It may be this happens, but i'd want to see the colour of your boards cash first.

I agree almost completely with that.

The one thing I'd disagree with is how much investment they'll need, in the short term anyway. Before Dalglish took over I'd have said they needed an almost-complete clear-out but now I'm not so sure - if he can get an improvement out of the rest of the squad similar to the improvement he's got out of the players he's used so far then perhaps things aren't as bad with the squad as had been presumed.

There's a couple of positions which definitely need better players in the summer - a left back and a holding midfielder. But outside of those I don't think there needs to be any big spending in the summer, as they can either bring their own youngsters thru or buy in promising youngsters from other clubs and they should be ready to use in a year or two when they'll be more needed than they are now.

But they'll need cash from the board for this summer's needed signings, and after the big splurge last week they might not get it - tho that spend being just about cash neutral helps an awful lot as long as those two players perform OK.

Edited February 7, 2011 by eFestivals

[Benj]

But outside of those I don't think there needs to be any big spending in the summer, as they can either bring their own youngsters thru or buy in promising youngsters from other clubs and they should be ready to use in a year or two when they'll be more needed than they are now.

[worm]

nah, not really. A good side would have 50 points or more by now. There's not really any good sides this year.

[worm]

I'm fed up with Birmingham

[Benj]

I'm fed up with Birmingham

[TheGayTent]

That's you done now pretty much isn't it?

[eFestivals]

Much easier said than done.

If they don't get CL cash in soon they'll be goosed in the medium term, the board needs to spend a lot to get them to any kind of level where they can compete on more than one front.

Don't forget they have not had CL football this year, imagine the state of that squad if they couldn't have rested their big players for the matches against the Europa no marks they played.

The squad is thread bear, imagine what the midfield would look like with Gerrard and Meurelles (sp?) out! Who's gonna come in and perform to a decent level, that fat kid (is it Speering)? No chance

Needed or not, their new owners aren't going to be spunking big money on mega-players - that's just not how they work.

And while a big part of me agrees that "The squad is thread bear", I'd have said along with that that Dalglish (or anyone else) couldn't have got anything like the improvement he has out of those players. But he has - so perhaps the squad isn't as bad as everyone had been thinking after all.

But if Dalglish keeps improving them as he has so far I don't think they'll have too much difficulty getting some decent kids in who'll be ready in a year or two.

I'm disappointed with Speering. The first few times Rafa used him he looked sharp, another Gerrard in the making - it doesn't look like he'll make it at Liverpool now. But you never know, maybe Kenny can work some magic on him too.

It looks like Dalglish thinks a lot of Shelby (or is it Shelvey?). I'm guessing that he's going to get a lot more games, and might turn out ok. And Kelly looks like he's been playing for years. So it's not completely bare in their own youth set-up.

[Benj]

Needed or not, their new owners aren't going to be spunking big money on mega-players - that's just not how they work.

And while a big part of me agrees that "The squad is thread bear", I'd have said along with that that Dalglish (or anyone else) couldn't have got anything like the improvement he has out of those players. But he has - so perhaps the squad isn't as bad as everyone had been thinking after all.

But if Dalglish keeps improving them as he has so far I don't think they'll have too much difficulty getting some decent kids in who'll be ready in a year or two.

I'm disappointed with Speering. The first few times Rafa used him he looked sharp, another Gerrard in the making - it doesn't look like he'll make it at Liverpool now. But you never know, maybe Kenny can work some magic on him too.

It looks like Dalglish thinks a lot of Shelby (or is it Shelvey?). I'm guessing that he's going to get a lot more games, and might turn out ok. And Kelly looks like he's been playing for years. So it's not completely bare in their own youth set-up.

[The Nal]

Did anyone else see the Chelski El Nino banner at the Bridge yesterday?

Includes the Shankly Gates at the bottom!!

[eFestivals]

They beat Chelsea because they were absolutely shit. Nowt else. That's not saying that they haven't improved, but the Chelsea that played against Sunderland would have murdered them: The Chelsea that could actually make a pass and could shoot on target.

Chelsea weren't at their best yesterday because Dalglish beat them tactically - something you failed to do.

And that tactical awareness of the managers is where Liverpool are going to beat you.

That's because he hasn't got those skills. What he has instead is a much better squad of players.

Bruce hasn't got the skill as a manager and neither does he have the better players. It's a very decent squad for Sunderland in recent years but it's still well short of what you're thinking.

[worm]

Chelsea weren't at their best yesterday because Dalglish beat them tactically

Edited February 7, 2011 by worm

[eFestivals]

Absolute rubbish!

Nope - he nailed them with tactics just as he did Stoke last week. You know, the Stoke who beat you at the weekend.

He has a much better squad.

hmmm ... OK, S'land might have a better squad, but they defo don't have a better 11 (before betty & mavis are included) than Liverpool do

Sunderland have had 3 crucial players out for a couple of months or so and haven't had them playing together for about 4 months now. We had our 4th and 5th choice CBs playing for about 4 games in a row. Liverpool would still be bottom half with our injuries.

I agree that Liverpool haven't had too much in the way of injuries to stuff them up.

And before you start talking your usual elitist rubbish, we beat Liverpool to a number of our current players.

You did? Who exactly?

[worm]

Nope - he nailed them with tactics just as he did Stoke last week. You know, the Stoke who beat you at the weekend.