Sunderland build up

[pondus]

everyone is expecting this to be dire, as shaggy says we look/feel flat now as the league has finally slipped away.

Hopefully this will have a different effect on the players now who to me have looked nervy/too rigid in league games as the pressure built.

I'd like to see rafa and the players relax a little, forget baout the typing problesm in the league and go out and enjoy their football and try and play with some fluidity and attack a little - team selection is a bit difficult with no right back and neither carra or on las sat performance skrtel looking comfortable there - i'd like too see us try and peg the visiting team back a little by flooding plyers into the box and overrunning them in their half so the can't get forward

------------- Reina

-----JC-----Hyypia-------Skrtel


Kuyt----alonso---Mascher--------Aurelio


------------Gerrard----------


-------Ngog------Babel----------



tell ngog and babel to get into the box as much as poss, gerrard to do what he does, and when either kuyt or aurelio push on the three at the back with mascher in front should be able to cope

In fact i have thought of the is before, when at games,certainly the typical home games that have us all so frustrated, with the other team playing 10 men behind the ball, often Alonso or Mascher drop back so deep to collect the ball that they are practically playing centre back, and in many games i have felt we could afford to sacrifice one of the centre backs for a more attacking player and say fair enough, if alonso is going keep dropping deep, he can plug that gap, so we have 6 men attacking which would pin these teams back on their own boxes and if a break does occur it will only ever be one or two opposition players in advanced positions as the rest have been pinned back - now surely the three centre backs along with xabi should be able to cope - and if they don't and concede well **** it, cause we will still be attacking and trying to get at the opposition which i would rather see now than playing out for another 'safety 0-0"

sorry, couldn't resist....

Great post actually, makes a lot of sense and we could definitely do with something like this! Something different, new and unexpected.

[pondus]

Rafa Benitez has challenged his players to earn their places against Real Madrid when Sunderland visit Anfield tonight.
The boss is hoping for a reaction against Ricky Sbragia's side following the 2-0 defeat in Middlesbrough.

A victory this evening could elevate Liverpool back above second-placed Chelsea, who travel to Portsmouth, while it would also lift spirits at Melwood ahead of next Tuesday's Champions League second round return against Real.

Benitez said: "I think that it is important for the players to understand that we are now checking everyone and analysing everything so they have to prove in every training session and in every game that they are ready for playing against Real Madrid.

"We are thinking about the Champions League as a major opportunity to win a trophy and the game coming up against Madrid as a chance to be in the next round where we want to be."

He added: "The important thing is always about getting three points from the next game and in this case it is at home against Sunderland.

"If we do win then we can see what the situation is in the table but for us the challenge is to approach every game thinking about winning.

"I think we have improved but we need to show this and we need to prove this until the end of the season.

"We have to keep on going and see if we can take three points in this game and then see what happens with United.

"The fact that this game has come very, very soon is positive for us."

[zimbo]

Any chance we could actually get an early goal and look to build on it, rather than stay at 0-0 till the second half, getting more and more frantic as the minutes tick by, with the crowd growing increasingly impatient and our lack of attacking options becoming ever more apparent?

We've managed just 2 goals in the league this season inside the first 20 minutes. That is a woeful return. Just go for the juggler from the off and kill the game by half time. It'd be nice to be able to relax once in a while.

[Shaggy]

Any chance we could actually get an early goal and look to build on it, rather than stay at 0-0 till the second half, getting more and more frantic as the minutes tick by, with the crowd growing increasingly impatient and our lack of attacking options becoming ever more apparent?

We've managed just 2 goals in the league this season inside the first 20 minutes. That is a woeful return. Just go for the juggler from the off and kill the game by half time. It'd be nice to be able to relax once in a while.

For me that's been our single biggest problem on the pitch this season.

[PTP]

sorry, couldn't resist....

Great post actually, makes a lot of sense and we could definitely do with something like this! Something different, new and unexpected.

haha i am dyslexic when i type - seriously always happens, it' cause i am usually distracted in work and talking someone whilst typing out my post


Yeah i agree that u agree with me - i just feel now, well the leagues gone, that pressure has surely lifted, time to relax, get back to basics and enjoy it - go out and have a go, attack, fill the opposition box, peg them back and get the crowd excited. - Funnily enough every one had a pop at rafa with the random team selection against portsmouth and forgetting about the two parties on here (the ones who think rafa is **** and its just pure luck what he has done and those who defend him etc etc) - either way, he picked a random team and it was probably our most exciting performance in terms of attacking that i had seen in months

We can't get any worse - EVERY single person knows that sunderland will be coming out tonight looking to do what has happened to us all season, sit deep soak up the pressure and just let us have the ball in front of them and pass it sideways, - and annoyingly we just seemed to have played in their hands when these tactics are deployed - why? i don't know but i do know tht at some of the games i have been to this season we have just not giving the opposition defenders anyting to worry about - mainly cause they have no one in or around the box in the danger area causing problems

so **** it - try something different, go out actually over running them in their half, put them under pressure, get their defenders on their heels and ****ing get men in the box causing problems - by doing this, we won't have to worry about being short at the back cause the best form of defence is attack and they will have to pull all their players back otherwise they run the risk of being completley ****ted

play three at the back - with either mascher or alonso sitting as cover - ask kuyt to do his usually running his hear out up and down, - ask aurelio to deliver quality in the box and tell ngog and babel to do nothing other than to get in the box as much as possible and face the ****ing goal

[Assassin]

[QUOTE=zimbo;1285549] Just go for the juggler [QUOTE]

FLMAO

Seriously I agree with yer

[PTP]

Any chance we could actually get an early goal and look to build on it, rather than stay at 0-0 till the second half, getting more and more frantic as the minutes tick by, with the crowd growing increasingly impatient and our lack of attacking options becoming ever more apparent?

We've managed just 2 goals in the league this season inside the first 20 minutes. That is a woeful return. Just go for the juggler from the off and kill the game by half time. It'd be nice to be able to relax once in a while.

aye - **** me how many times i have been to anfield and just watched as the first 45 seemed to be dragged out painfully - before the crowd and players start to get twitchy in the second half and we play dire until the last 5 mins when we wake up and attack for a late winner and play like we should have from the first minut no the 85th minute

[zimbo]

[QUOTE=Assassin;1285557][QUOTE=zimbo;1285549] Just go for the juggler

FLMAO

Seriously I agree with yer

To be fair, those soap-dodging *******s have always got right on my tits.

And clowns have got nothing to look smug about either.

[PTP]

[QUOTE=Assassin;1285557][QUOTE=zimbo;1285549] Just go for the juggler

FLMAO

Seriously I agree with yer

haha - in my head I have circus music playing - dahdahdahdahdahdahdahdahdahdah duh duh duh.

[Joe King]

We should test their keeper from the off just to unsettle Sunderland and get the crowd going - pump diagonal high balls and win the second balls so we can pile pressure on them. I seem to remember Sunderland nearly getting a tremendous draw against United until Genocide popped out from his dirty cave to score.

[zimbo]

aye - **** me how many times i have been to anfield and just watched as the first 45 seemed to be dragged out painfully - before the crowd and players start to get twitchy in the second half and we play dire until the last 5 mins when we wake up and attack for a late winner and play like we should have from the first minut no the 85th minute

We haven't scored in the first 20 minutes at any home game this season in the league. That has to be some kind of record.

[pondus]

You should do the pre-match talk with them today:

GET IN THE BOX!

FACE THE ****ING GOAL!!

SCORE LOADS!!!

[TheElephantMan]

I'm taking my girlfriend to her first match tonight so I hope it's a decent atmosphere, she might bring us a bit of luck?!

It's been embarrassing listening to the boos and jeers from a minority of supporters during the last couple of months, now that the pressure's off a bit hopefully the crowd will get behind the team.

[Assassin]

I'm taking my girlfriend to her first match tonight so I hope it's a decent atmosphere, she might bring us a bit of luck?!

It's been embarrassing listening to the boos and jeers from a minority of supporters during the last couple of months, now that the pressure's off a bit hopefully the crowd will get behind the team.

Well if things go tits up at least you might get lucky

[PTP]

You should do the pre-match talk with them today:

GET IN THE BOX!

FACE THE ****ING GOAL!!

SCORE LOADS!!!

haha exactly - i do think rafa over complicates and over thinks it some times - sometimes, you just need to ****ing keep it simple, keep it to basics and score more than the opposition