the digler

[MrMichael]

Can't be arsed to read all that lot so they're all merged......

[Alex]

Im out of this thread now. There were three differnt directions to those threads now there all confused and mixed up.

[kop-al-74]

well it doesent matter what you think does it, the manager thought he bought the right dutchman and thats all that matters

Well until Rafa comes on here and tells me to shut it,i'll keep on giving my opinion on how i see things.OK!:whatever:

[Parm]

The problem is that he drops deep too often and so is not in goalscoring positions often enough.We don't know if he is doing this on Rafa's instructions or not. I would love to see him staying around the box for the majority of the game and see if he could score more .

Definitely too early too start a lynch mob

I think you are spot on fella, maybe it's Rafa's tactics, maybe it's his way of trying to find space, but he does drop too deep.
I think though that this season, we will see him pushed higher up the pitch with maybe torres doing the link work.

[Dhav]

Dirk

[Revo]

Well until Rafa comes on here and tells me to shut it,i'll keep on giving my opinion on how i see things.OK!:whatever:

you might be important on koptalk mate but on here your just another run of the mill gobshiite like the rest of us :whatever:

[kop-al-74]

you might be important on koptalk mate but on here your just another run of the mill gobshiite like the rest of us :whatever:

And i never claimed to be anything else,my old mucker!

Whats with the aggresion?

[paulcooper4]

FFS starting up threads like this and the appreciation thread, whats wrong with discussing opinions in the Diggler thread, do you think your opinions are more important than others?
Ridiculous.

wind your neck in fella, its only t`internet

[Red Chilli]

The question for me has to be:

Where does Rafa see him fitting in to the team?

To say he's not a goalscorer is ignorant of his record before he joined LFC. It's clear he knows where the back of the net is.
When I watch him play it's continuous frustration at the positions he takes up. I think it's got to the stage where Rafa has to "do a Paisley" and repeat Sir Bob's ultimatum to Rushie "be more selfish son or you're out the team".
Just get in the box Dirk and get on the end of some of the crosses.

I do however feel that he's had his season to settle in, he could turn out to be as successful as Drogba was in his 2nd season

[Red Star]

The question for me has to be:

Where does Rafa see him fitting in to the team?

This is the main point for me. If Rafa was telling him to get in the box and he was ignoring orders then I'm sure Rafa would drop him. So I think he is playing to Rafa's instructions.

Unless Rafa throws him up front then we won't get to see him as an out and out striker.

I think Rafa has a different role for Dirk than we expect.

[Dhav]

This is the main point for me. If Rafa was telling him to get in the box and he was ignoring orders then I'm sure Rafa would drop him. So I think he is playing to Rafa's instructions.

Unless Rafa throws him up front then we won't get to see him as an out and out striker.

I think Rafa has a different role for Dirk than we expect.

But I think this is exactly the point, and it is what I eluded to earlier on in the thread - it is safe to assume that Kuyt is following instructions from Rafa when he drops deep or goes wide. Yes he also did that at Feyenoord, but he also got his fair share of goals from inside the box there as well. It would be a big surprise to me if Dirk is the first striker who prefers to run deep and wide rather than hang around the box.

To my mind Rafa has never played a style that was conducive to having a focal point to the attack, ie a player at the spearhead who you would constantly give service to and look for 20-25 goals a season from him a la Drogba, Henry, Van Nistelrooy. Rafa's team ethic and patient, possession, compact play is far more conducive to several players chipping in with several goals than one player chipping in with the majority

[Ron_Mexico]

i have to admit i was disappointed with kuyts techinical ability when he started playing for us. his first touch is poor alot of the time and in the final third he seems to struggle in reading the game and picking the best option. he's not sharp in front of goal either, he seems to lack the instincts of a striker, he often rushes himself and just smashes the ball as hard as he can. he's probably the least refined dutch player i've ever seen......but given all that i still think with the right partner (torres) he could be very effective. his workrate and hold up play are generally very strong, he's a good link between midfield and the main striker, and he seems more comfortable shooting from distance rather than getting in the box

play him upfront on his own and all his bad qualities become magnified. pair him with the right partner and it will allow him to play to his strengths. it also helps if there is a goal threat from midfield, which we seem to be lacking in the dirk kuyt era

[Joe Le Toff]

I feel as though it's sacrilege to question whether Hard Work Dirk's good enough. I've been doing it since day one but the reaction is nearly always frenzied.

I don't think he's good enough but he's impossible not to love with his commitment to the cause and his *yawn* phenomenal work rate.

Last night, with Kuyt & Voronin, we may as well have been playing a 4-6-0. It was the same in the CL final when Rafa ludicrously decided to play Kuyt as a lone "frontman" - yet again it became a 4-6-0.

Torres and Crouch should start at Villa.

Couldnt agree more, ive been saying virtually the same thing myself for some time.
Good work rate just isnt enough, that should be a given anyway for a Liverpool player.
If Kuyt was making the runs and getting in the goalscoring positions, then i would think that if he was pushed further forward then the goals would come, but the fact is that he doesnt. He harries and chases all day without being too much of a nuisance to defenders and as a goal threat for me he is non-existent.
That said, it was his first season and he should be given more time to prove himself. This season is the crucial one for Dirk and if he doesnt perform then i would like to think he would be moved on, but that remains to be seen.
All in all, my preferred front 2 pairing as it stands currently would be Crouch and Torres without a shadow of a doubt.
I hope and pray that we dont start with 1 up front against Villa, be it Kuyt or Torres, but ive a funny feeling we might.

[Joe Le Toff]

This is the main point for me. If Rafa was telling him to get in the box and he was ignoring orders then I'm sure Rafa would drop him. So I think he is playing to Rafa's instructions.

Im not so sure about that, it seems a natural part of Dirk's game to drop off deep. If he was a natural 1st striker and furthest forward, then he would/should be making runs and making himself a goalscoring target for the midfield, but he doesnt and rarely seems to be in the box.

[Joe Le Toff]

Honestly mate, I really hope you're right about Kuyt. I would love to be proven wrong about him and would quite happily hold my hands up if he turns out to be one of Rafa's better signings.