Benitez questions Everton tactics

[bipjohn]

As for a replacement, i've said it already, I'd go for Jose.

.

Ok. Do you think he would be accepted at Anfield, among the 20 or so mates I go to the game with Id say all wouldnt want him, due to how he is, arrogant, un-liverpool like and after all of the previous between him and us.

Also, tactically I am not sure he is all he is cracked up to be. Yes, Porto he did an excellent job with smaller rescources, but look how many of that Porto team went on to better things when they left, so they were clearly good players. Since then he spent unheard of cash at Cheski and won trophies and now he inherited the best team in Italy, at a time when Milan have aged even more, Juve have Ranieri at the helm and little other challengers.

He wouldnt get millions with us, no doubt, also really his football was pretty dire at Chelsea.....?

[Kenneth]

ha ha. joking right....?

If I am easily impressed mate, you and a load of others here are easily depressed.

Not one of you lot come on here with an alternative to the current manager?

You moan, moan, moan and moan again tell us about negativity and how poor his tactics are and how terrible we are and slate everyone who is still positive.

Well I am still positive and we have the best manager for the job at our club, he makes mistakes, we all do, Ferguson does, Mourinho did, Scolari does, Capello does and will make more.

I am frustrated to hell when we draw games we should be winning but I am also happy when we win games we perhaps shouldnt.

I am gutted we drew but if you dont think we played well yesterday, especially 2nd half, then Ill go back to my first line, clearly, you are easily depressed.

We were ****e for the first hour and looked pretty good after we scored. Skrtel was poor in the first half imo. I don't want an alternative to the current manager but am not going to pretend we're playing well when we're playing poorly.

[Kenneth]

Its rubbish, Everton had a go, were low on resources and in the second half they were under pressure from us and probably happy to hold on. I don't for one second think they came for a draw.

Thats all, its an excuse. You have to be able to create more and put them away.

[tsb]

Thats all, its an excuse. You have to be able to create more and put them away.

Score more than them and we will win, no point blaming a team hanging onto a draw to take the game to their place.

[barnes10]

why does he complain? we won a CL when we were playing better teams with this style. who is he to complain when another team does it to us.

the fact is, his team isnt consistently clinical and struggles to break teams down. he has to solve that and shouldnt waste time complaining about other teams.

i haven't read the exact quotes but he shouldnt 'moan' about this stuff. all the top teams face it so what does he expect?

[Maxiedge]

Agree with the posters who are genuinely worried.

We are so rubbish at the moment. Only saving grace are the world class contingent. Balance on the right is all wrong. Kuyt and Arbeloa offer the same attacking threat (not much). Kuyt is alright but he's the sort of player that once he gets replaced, we won't be looking back.

Why do we play patient football against a side thats defending with 11 men? Towards the end of the first half there was a bit of urgency (control, then pass ...forwards) and thats the way we should have carried on in the second.

I'd rather give possesion away playing more up tempo football rather than passing it back and forth, side to side and then eventually hoofing it up. If you show a bit of drive, determination and aggression, opponents are more likely to make mistakes and that how you break down teams that come to defend. FFS It's not a game of chess, it's football.

[Craig_H]

but i do rate skittles tbh i didnt realise you didnt fella

No no, i DO rate him. I think he was below par for both recent derbies though.

[Craig_H]

Ok. Do you think he would be accepted at Anfield, among the 20 or so mates I go to the game with Id say all wouldnt want him, due to how he is, arrogant, un-liverpool like and after all of the previous between him and us.

Also, tactically I am not sure he is all he is cracked up to be. Yes, Porto he did an excellent job with smaller rescources, but look how many of that Porto team went on to better things when they left, so they were clearly good players. Since then he spent unheard of cash at Cheski and won trophies and now he inherited the best team in Italy, at a time when Milan have aged even more, Juve have Ranieri at the helm and little other challengers.

He wouldnt get millions with us, no doubt, also really his football was pretty dire at Chelsea.....?

Ok, regarding the Porto players - yes they were obviously pretty good, but he still needed to sign them and use them properly. He did that enormously well.

Re chelsea - i think we're seeing now, with a very similarly expensive squad, that it's not a foregone conclusion that anyone would win the title with them. Scolari is making a mess of it and barring one or two differences, he has mainly the same personnel. I think it points to Jose Mourinho's ability to get the best out of what he has at his disposal. He'd do the same for LFC, i think. I dont think Mourinho's chelsea played dire football, i think that's a myth. What they DID do was stop at 2-0, rather than go for 3 or 4 goals. They played good stuff to get to a comfortable position, then saw the result out. Frankly, WE'RE playing dire football right now and as the first derby game showed, we cant even see out a leading position right now. Mourinho's Chelsea rarely failed to do that.

As for people accepting him - well to be blunt about it, i have two views on this.

Firstly, i honestly am not fussed if some fans didnt accept him. It's their view and they're entitled to it, i'm not going to change their minds. But ultimately, i feel he would win us the PL title and that in itself is bigger than most other factors put together.

Secondly, i think the vast majority of people who didnt accept him, would (grudgingly, perhaps) end up loving him, if he won the title for us. Which i think he would.

Finally, i'd just point out that virtually every report from people within football that i read about Mourinho, credited him for being respectful and dignified towards them. I think most of the stuff people hate him for, was just pantomime and he played the game with the media very well.

I think most of that was for show and underneath the surface, i dont think he's the satanic figure many portray him to be.

[Craig_H]

Agree with the posters who are genuinely worried.

We are so rubbish at the moment. Only saving grace are the world class contingent. Balance on the right is all wrong. Kuyt and Arbeloa offer the same attacking threat (not much). Kuyt is alright but he's the sort of player that once he gets replaced, we won't be looking back.

Why do we play patient football against a side thats defending with 11 men? Towards the end of the first half there was a bit of urgency (control, then pass ...forwards) and thats the way we should have carried on in the second.

I'd rather give possesion away playing more up tempo football rather than passing it back and forth, side to side and then eventually hoofing it up. If you show a bit of drive, determination and aggression, opponents are more likely to make mistakes and that how you break down teams that come to defend. FFS It's not a game of chess, it's football.

That last paragraph couldnt be more on the money.

[Marky]

Get a grip Rafa ffs, if you've such belief in your team then why couldn't they overcome Everton's tactics, eh?
Up to us to break them down and beat but we failed to, no excuses, end of.

[rezaeos]

I dont see stating a fact is a criticisim ?

He said ""One team was trying to win and the other team was trying not to lose,"

So is he complaining for ending second best? Moyes has out smarted him in two straight games. What really frustrates me is the fact we won fairly easily at Goodison, in the Prem, and am willing to bet will do so again in the Cup replay. So why doesn't he bring the same winners outlook to Anfield?

[Exiled_red]

Everton got what they wanted. We were unlucky not to win but should have created more than what we did. Having said that, Had Howard not made a tremendous save from Stevie, Torres shooting staright at Jagielka and Kuyt not being useless we would have been looking at it from a different angle.

To often we slowed the pace down and allowed Everton the time to organize. All the chances created came from when we went hurtling towards their goal as opposed to passing it side to side. We are not Barca, we lack the craft of Xavi, Messi, Iniesta et all, so we should not be trying slow possession football.

When we go for the throat we are a top attacking team. We should stick to what we are best at. However this normally only happens when we are loosing a game or playing counter attack to the best sides.

It's something we do too little IMO. This season 90% of our best football has come when we've been chasing games. If we showed the same drive and passion from the start of games as we do when we are behind not many teams would be able to live with us. We end up with the frustrating performances in the games like Stoke, Fulham and Hull etc where on level terms we don't try hard enough to get the goals early on

[bipjohn]

[QUOTE=rezaeos;1261384] Moyes has out smarted him in two straight games. QUOTE]

Moyes has outsmarted him????

I really dont agree with that at all. That was one of the least imaginative, poorest performances from an Everton team that Ive seen in years. At least Joe Royles boys would get stuck in.
Of course the irony is we drew twice!

If outsmarting someone is hammering the ball forward and looking for freekicks, wasting time, diving, then so be it.

And dont buy this 'had no strikers' crap, they played a big bustling centre forward at right midfield.

[Exiled_red]

Agree with the posters who are genuinely worried.

We are so rubbish at the moment. Only saving grace are the world class contingent. Balance on the right is all wrong. Kuyt and Arbeloa offer the same attacking threat (not much). Kuyt is alright but he's the sort of player that once he gets replaced, we won't be looking back.

Why do we play patient football against a side thats defending with 11 men? Towards the end of the first half there was a bit of urgency (control, then pass ...forwards) and thats the way we should have carried on in the second.

I'd rather give possesion away playing more up tempo football rather than passing it back and forth, side to side and then eventually hoofing it up. If you show a bit of drive, determination and aggression, opponents are more likely to make mistakes and that how you break down teams that come to defend. FFS It's not a game of chess, it's football.

Part of the problem is we value keeping possession too highly and don't risk anything by creating chances. Hence we have alot of the ball but do nothing with it, IMO it's no use having 75% possession as we did on sunday if you don't win the game. Keeping the ball with sideways passes and little drive or attacking ambition is fine when you are 2 or 3 goals up and looking to play out time!

[Joe King]

David Pleat's chalkboard
Lack of guile leaves Liverpool frustrated by Blue blockade
Benítez's side dominated possession but Everton's defence forced them wide and stifled their attacking prowess

Monday 26 January 2009 02.41 GMT [Guardian]

Everton, deprived of injured front men and their main playmaker, were focused and disciplined throughout. Rarely can a team dominate a game and create so few chances as Liverpool did here.

David Moyes, without his playmaker Mikel Arteta, selected a 4-2-3-1 plan to hold the game and counter when possible. He expected Liverpool to monopolise the ball, and so it was. In attack Victor Anichebe was a lonely figure. The Reds raced out of the blocks and the early tempo eclipsed Monday's league game. Pepe Reina, until that moment a spectator, was shocked when Joleon Lescott flicked home Tim Cahill's header from Steven Pienaar's corner.

In Arteta's absence Segundo Castillo joined Phil Neville in midfield. He was an uncoordinated presence with the ball but a valuable second barrier in front of the splendid centre-backs in Phil Jagielka and Lescott. Everton's full-backs, Leighton Baines and Tony Hibbert, tucked in and stood firm and invited the ball out wide.

When Steven Gerrard stormed through after being released by Fernando Torres' skill, he found rare space and scored thanks to Tim Howard's error. Everton had to withstand a further 35 minutes of continued Liverpool possession but they fought and defended manfully.

Solid, deep and narrow across their defensive area, they continually angled their bodies and positioned themselves to encourage the Reds to move the ball wide. Once there, however, Liverpool lacked the craft or penetration to outwit the defence.

Without a clever dribbler to hit the byline, and with Leon Osman and Pienaar assiduously covering their stay-at-home full-backs, the home side were reduced to hitting ineffective crosses that were comfortably dealt with by Everton's central defenders. Liverpool stubbornly refused to alter their shape and in the end they deservedly failed to find a winner.