A major problem in our play

[redlancer]

I agree with majority its our 4-4-2 rigid formation.

Did Rafa buy one too many striker?
If we'd of got Kuyt before Bellamy would we off gone in for said welshman?

Can't help think we're also putting out a side to counter the oposition instead of letting the oposition worry about us.

Most anoying thing yesterday is Stevie was given his CM role and dissapeared into it.

Someone said Alonso isn't a good enuff barrier, I dissagree his vision and football awareness is 2nd too none. Yesterday it was only Alonso barking at ref and when Riise ran his socks off to avert a goal kick into a throwin, only Alonso ran to help him out.

Maybe our defensive setup is to protect our back 5 who again yesterday looked so dissjointed and Sami a few times was being sucked out of position.

At the current time i'd say our best 2 left sided players are Riise and Speedy, both defensivly and attacking. SO why are we sticking with Aurelio

[Red_Polo]

4-4-2 doesn't have to be limited and rigid in attack, it's actually pretty flexible. But that means nothing when your players show no impetus to move off the ball which was what happened for long periods yesterday.

[Shaggy]

We've got serious problems.

[Jack D Rips]

I agree that our midfield are not getting forward enough. What annoyed me yesterday was the amount of times our attacks broke down to the edge of the box and we hadnt a midfielder in sight to follow up. Very frustrating.

I dont always agree with Johnny Giles but I do when he says that Stevie G is a world class player but not as a conventional midfielder who tackles, tidies up and generally makes everything look simple. He needs to play ahead of the midfield and get into the box more.

Incidentally Crouch is getting a lot of stick on this thread for his ( lack of) heading ability. Yesterday I thought he won practically every ball he went for.

[Nic83]

It's not even an Aimar or Zola type i'm talking about really, it's a centre midfielder who actually gets beyond the strikers or arrives late in the box, ala Scholes, Cahill and the like.

One of those can easily play in a 4-4-2.

Do you remember me on KT, continuosly calling for another "attacking central midfielder"?

You're spot on Syd and the 2 i continuosly mentioned on KT were Barton and Nolan.

We are completely lacking in cover for Gerrard. Momo, as you say, has no goal threat( hopefully we can improve him in this department) and Alonso is a sitting Midfielder.

We have Zenden who just isn't good enough IMO.

I am very surprised that Rafa hasn't tried to buy either Barton or Nolan. Both Scouse and both would be cheap enough.

[Fowler_God]

I 100% agree with what your saying DJS. Ive been saying the same thing since last season. We never have any penetration into the box from the middle of the field. Alonso sits in the hole waiting for bits and bobs a momo is not much further forward than him.
When a cross does come in the defenders have the 2 forwards marked out and they know they dont have to worry about anyone arriving late in the box to pick up a knock down or get on the end of a cross.

We are a very limited team when we attack. There is always one eye on the oppostion team breaking away rather than making the attack we are on count. Also on counter attacks we are a bit too slow and dozy. Ive seen some this season were we have gone for it and caused a few problems, but in other games the ball comes out from Reina quickly and then its slowed down because we dont really have anyone who can run at a man and beat him like the mancs have with Ronaldo or chelsea with Robben, cole, SWP. If you watch the mancs and chelsea a lot of their goals come from quick breakways.

Still maybe 2 players short of the title yet.

[Kopite_Colin]

We've got the bestattacking CMer in Europe and we should use him to he best of his ability. One of Alonso / Momo behind him. The problem is our lack of strikers who know how to score goals regularly. That's really coming home to haunt us, as I feared. Crouch & Bellamy aren't natural goalscorers and Fowler is past it (and isn't even making it to or off the bench). That leaves Kuyt as a real threat who at present is injured. Add to that to the 2 wide players we bought haven't settled yet (Gonzalez especially), is leaving us VERY short in terms of attacking options. Add in rotation with so many new players and 1 or 2 defensive lapses and it adds up to a poor, poor start.

[Red Chilli]

We've got the bestattacking CMer in Europe and we should use him to he best of his ability.

Correct.

[CharlieMansonsSquint]

The major problem?, apart from some players not being good enough is the lack of attacking intent from the first.

We are easily better than the rest of the League outside of the top 4, yet away from home especially we sit back and don't take the intiative. And it ****in pisses me right off.

The Alonso - Sissoko midfield isn't the problem. It's the lack of movement, creativity and clinical finishing in front of them that costs us. Yesterday was a case in point. The wide players never switched with the strikers, or Gerrard never moved wide from the middle. Everything was rigid, and Blackburn, from open play, defended it quite comfortably.

You'll notice that when Gerrard plays on the right and Garcia up front - like last season on that run of ours - we look much more dangerous. Gerrard can cut in or go wide and Garcia's the one genuine creative forward we've got. They are constantly moving and finding space.

Bottom line is that we need more clever and talented players in the final third; the 2 wide and front positions. We've got Garcia, Kuyt and Gerrard so that's a start, and Crouch is an excellent weapon. But it's not enough.

[fowlen]

It's not even an Aimar or Zola type i'm talking about really, it's a centre midfielder who actually gets beyond the strikers or arrives late in the box, ala Scholes, Cahill and the like.

One of those can easily play in a 4-4-2.

How about a midfield of Gerrard, ALonso and Sissoko and Garcia playing just ahead of them and between the strikers in a 4 3 1 2 formation?

I think we also need Kewell back pretty quickly!

[Lecter]

It should be Gerrard, he's one of the best in the premiership at getting forward from midfield. Look at his goal tally last season.
For some bizzare reason Rafa wants to play Gerrard on the right wing. Baffles me.

Its funny because Gerrard scored those goals from playing on the right of midfield and timing his runs into the middle / box from that position

[Snigger]

Gerrard has to play CM - If we are home against a weak side with Xabi - if we are away against a strong side with Momo.

[Lecter]

Gerrard has to play CM - If we are home against a weak side with Xabi - if we are away against a strong side with Momo.

Would you class Galatasaray and Blackburn as weak sides because we struggled against both of those with Gerrard & Alonso in the middle

[Shaggy]

Gerrard has to play CM - If we are home against a weak side with Xabi - if we are away against a strong side with Momo.

Totally disagree with this Sniggs. If anything our recent struggles against the likes of Galatasaray and Blackburn, without Momo, have highlighted how important he is to us. No matter who you’re playing against, you always need a ball winner. Always.

Momo should start every game, fitness permitting, IMO.

[Rich]

I'm starting to think along the lines of MrM's 4-2-3-1 idea.

Alonso and Momo to start every game, we then have 3 interchangable players - Speedy, Garcia, Gerrard, Bellamy, Kewell, Zenden(!), Pennant(!!) - with one up top, Kuyt or Crouch.

Riise and Finnan at times will be able to provide some width, and one of the 3 can also break out wide.