Is rotation the issue?

[tomasjj]

Rotation is a problem when some of the players you are rotating in aren't as good as you think.

Exactomundo!

[Alpha]

Nice avatar mate

Series 2 in the pipeline.

[paulcooper4]

Rotation is a good excuse.Individual performances by our "World class" players seem to be where the problem lies.





These players train together every day in different formations.I wonder if they can actually pass a ball in training because in real games..........................

[Red Chilli]

Series 2 in the pipeline.

Totally ****ing Mexico

[andyinswinton]

Rotation is a problem when some of the players you are rotating in aren't as good as you think.

[CharlieMansonsSquint]

Rafa has been playing too much Football Manager.

You know how after a hard League game, you've got a League Cup game 3 days later and all you best players are at 74% fitness. But instead of risking them you use the likes of Pennant, Voronin, Sissoko and their unrealistically inflated stats and nearly always get away with it.

Shame it's not realistic eh?

[redlancer]

maybe it not rotating certain players - Stevie was way off the boil and Carra looked tired.

we've stopped rotating Torres and I was sat in exactly the same spot as i was for the Chelsea match.
one defence was scared stiff the other looked in full control

[Revo]

**** Pako, stick with the men that are still here

fazzakerley

[Frank Leroux]

I voted no.

I'm no fan of 'rotation' but I think it's overly simplistic to hang our recent form on it. Too handy an analysis.

Personally, I think the problem is with the boss. No joy in saying/thinking this. No 'knee-jerk' either. I suspect Benitez is determined to remove the soul from his game/team. He's too cerebral in his philosophy. He's making a simple game difficult.

Rotation is part of it, but I think there's a more fundamental fault.

It's why I don't believe he'll win us the PL. It's maybe why he could win us the CL again.....

Frank.

[JPK]

No his bad signings are.He has made some serious buys and some horrendous ones.
If we hoof against Spurs i'm turning the game off.

[redlancer]

No his bad signings are.He has made some sreious buys and some horrendous ones.
If we hoof against Spurs i'm turning the game off.

who are these bad signings.

Babel is still young
Torres is still young
Voronin is the crow.
Yossi has shown he can chip in with goals.

Kuyt jury still out but when he's started with Torres we haven't done bad.

Momo although not the way forward is hardly a bad buy but we should of cashed in.

Maybe its the players he inherited that need to step up a gear.

Not signing Hienze and Agger getting injured are 2 huge factors IMO.

[Johnny]

who are these bad signings.

Babel is still young
Torres is still young
Voronin is the crow.
Yossi has shown he can chip in with goals.

Kuyt jury still out but when he's started with Torres we haven't done bad.

Momo although not the way forward is hardly a bad buy but we should of cashed in.

Maybe its the players he inherited that need to step up a gear.

Not signing Hienze and Agger getting injured are 2 huge factors IMO.

Best post i`ve read today.

[Red_Polo]

Of course it is. Rotation is bollocks. You play your best 11 at all times. Always has been the best way - always will be. You replace them if they're injured or they lose form. You need a squad of players of sufficient quality to come in when necessary. Rotating at this stage of the season is just plain stupid - especially with a squad with a number of new individuals.

Man Utd and Chelsea rotate like **** and do well. Win league titles even. It's got next to nothing to do with friggin rotation.

Nope. **** form and even worse tonight, not enough effort.

Spot ****ing on.

There was no sign of a team out there tonight. Just a collection of clueless individuals who were barely arsed to get the ball. Whenever we did get it, the man on the ball was left to do whatever the **** he wanted on his own. Torres made some nice off the ball runs, but apart from that the lack of desire shown off the ball when we had possession was an absolute disgrace.

I was angry when these kind of no-show performances happened at the beginning of last season, by now there is absolutely no excuse, they should have been consigned to history as nothing more than a hangover from 2 ****e seasons at the end of the Ged era.

Momo had a stinker but then he is prone to do that when people don't give him an easy pass to play. **** as he was, I actually feel a bit sorry for Leto. The kid starts on a European night and must have been looking to just play a steady game and link well with those around him, putting in some nice runs when he gets the right ball played to him. His teammates go and put him in the **** by saying, nah, can't be ****ed to play as a team today. An overwhelming lack of effort and desire. It really was a gobsmackingly ****e performace. How we can go from working so well together in attack and defence against Chelsea, to this abject turdfest, I really don't know.

[cobain]

Nope. **** form and even worse tonight, not enough effort.

No effort whatsover. But to be fair, Marseille played superb today! Their tactics were spot on and it looked like as if they were playing at home and we were away ... But then again, we have a squad to defeat every team in the world ... Like I said, fine the players with no wages for a month.

[kurtangle01]

Well when you look at how many changes are made week in week out and with players who are underperforming on a consistent basis getting played regardless of form then I'd have to say that yes rotation is a problem.