What is Rafa on about ?

[The Glove]

So people think Rafa was happy at todays performance? Was he ****. You could see him during the game he was ****in fuming. He will have bollocked them something rotten in that changing room, he just wont do it in the press. That creates more and more negativity which we dont need right now. If you read it, he is saying that we need to start winning games and we need to keep going when we go a goal down. He is right with that.

[The Glove]

If a player plays well enough he will keep his spot, he might get rested for the odd game but the spot will still be his. The problem is no one is playing well enough to justify any starting positions at the moment.

Is exactly right.

[Rocket]

he just wont do it in the press. That creates more and more negativity which we dont need right now. .

don't wash your skid marked pants in public

[The Glove]

This is a key point.Players need to know they'll be rewarded for good performances.Nobody can tell me that professional athletes get tired playing football for a maximum 270 minutes each week.In march or April some might be tired but not now.

I'm ****ing sick of rotation.

Was anyone sick of rotation last year when we ****ed over loads of teams? Now we go through a bit of a bad spell and its the cause to all our problems. Bollocks.

[alunevans]

Chris,

That implies though that people are dropped every single game because they've not done enough to keep their spec. For 90 odd games? I just don't buy that mate. People have often played well and then missed out the next game even if already relatively rested.

This is not just a case of dropping those who've not done well enough to keep their place. Its something more than that.

[The Glove]

houllier would have been hung, drawn and quarterd by all of us if he had made comments like that after the game when we have been **** all season so why should rafa be any different?

he's ****ed up as much as anyone ths season with his constant tinkering and spending £8million on average players like pennant. it's nomistake that we were at our best last season when rafa had a settled core of 8 players who played every week and made only 1 or 2 changes each week.

fans are right to have a go.

He still has a core of players tho. The same core of players just arent performing. Its **** all to do with rotation. Gerrard is having a bit of a mare, Carra is on just starting to find a bit of form, Alonso is having a bad spell. Maybe if anything, Rafa isnt rotating enough as a few off form players are getting in every week. But the squad cant cope without them so we need to just battle on for now.

[Tom]

Rafa would have let his players know behind doors that they didn't perform. Top managers rarely castigate players in public. It's totally counter-productive.

Anyone seriously calling for Rafa's head needs to think hard about who, if anyone, could do any better.

Simple and unpalatable truth is that we don't have the money to compete with utd and chelsea. Forget about the championship, it won't happen unless we have significant investment.

The best we can hope for until then is an annual scrap with arsenal for 3rd. We won that last year, this year looks bleak at the moment but it's not beyond us.

[alunevans]

Was anyone sick of rotation last year when we ****ed over loads of teams? Now we go through a bit of a bad spell and its the cause to all our problems. Bollocks.

I've never really been a fan of rotation no. I don't think its as necessary as its made out.

I think you can reach the point where you get too clever, or you devalue the jersey to the point whereby nobody is fighting to keep hold of it anymore because it gets handed round to everyone.

Players sometimes need rest, yes. Certain games need a tactical adjustment yes. And some players are suited more to a particular job than another player.

But even when winning games I don't really believe rotation is a help.

[The Glove]

Chris,

That implies though that people are dropped every single game because they've not done enough to keep their spec. For 90 odd games? I just don't buy that mate. People have often played well and then missed out the next game even if already relatively rested.

This is not just a case of dropping those who've not done well enough to keep their place. Its something more than that.

95% of the time tho mate it works. Rafa picks his team according to who we are playing, trying to highlight their weaknesses. Then its down to the players. Look at when we played PSV, we knew Kronkamp was balls so picked a team that was geared to attacking down his side. Today we picked a team to try and stifle the threat from their midfield. It worked because their was next to **** all for Rooney and Saha. Rafa can choose the tactics for the game and the players. Today it was the players that let us down. Personally Idve gone with 2 up front but the team he picked shouldve performed. We lost by determination from their players, no tactic or rotation can make a player give his all, thats down to them.

[alunevans]

He still has a core of players tho. The same core of players just arent performing. Its **** all to do with rotation. Gerrard is having a bit of a mare, Carra is on just starting to find a bit of form, Alonso is having a bad spell. Maybe if anything, Rafa isnt rotating enough as a few off form players are getting in every week. But the squad cant cope without them so we need to just battle on for now.

I don't think rotation is THE reason we're crap. Its a hindrance in my view. But yes, there's more to it than that.

The bigger reason is that too many of our players aren't good enough, and our best players are off form (for whatever reason that is).

I also think the players we brought in to plug the gaps in our squad have been so poorly selected that all its done is left an additional gap in our pocket.

What reasons would you give as to what is going wrong. We've lost more games than we've won, we've not scored a goal away from home other than a dodgy penalty. We've had two consecutive performances where we've simply not put the work in.

If the big players are off form, why?

[Morph]

I'll just repeat what I said earlier then when you said people DO have their shirt if good enough and only 2 places were up for grabs.

"For at least a third of the team thats not been true for ages."

4 is at least a third of the team.

How else do you expect to bed players into a team, we are still a team in transition, sometimes you have to go backwards to com forwards.

Agger coming in for Hyypia is unavoidable, as his age is starting to show and it would have been easier had Agger not got injured.

Settling on a a left winger I agree is a problem, but like I said Gonzalez might just be getting his chance in that role now, but this problem has been around since last season so it's not new, also don't forget the injury to Kewell.

We had to give Pennant the chance on the right to see if he would step up

Second striker isn't necessarily that important as it's good to have 3 strikers to switch between. but the settled two look to be Kuyt and Bellamy.

So I don't see a lot of places 'up for grabs' there, just 4 positions unfortunately needing resolving at the same time.

obligatory smart arse smiley

[alunevans]

95% of the time tho mate it works. Rafa picks his team according to who we are playing, trying to highlight their weaknesses. Then its down to the players. Look at when we played PSV, we knew Kronkamp was balls so picked a team that was geared to attacking down his side. Today we picked a team to try and stifle the threat from their midfield. It worked because their was next to **** all for Rooney and Saha. Rafa can choose the tactics for the game and the players. Today it was the players that let us down. Personally Idve gone with 2 up front but the team he picked shouldve performed. We lost by determination from their players, no tactic or rotation can make a player give his all, thats down to them.

fair point but that was true of blackburn too in the first half in particular. the question is, why is there no determination from the players. why isn't rafa able to get their heads right? why do they seem so demotivated and not seeming to give a toss?

[Rocket]

i don't think rotation is really the problem, realistically, about 8/9 players usually stay the same

reina

finnan
hyypia
cara
riise

momo
gerrard
xabi

kuyt

only like 2 players generally change, just the fact thats its not the identical team, and sky can continue using the 90 odd different team stat, that people make a big deal out of it

[alunevans]

How else do you expect to bed players into a team, we are still a team in transition, sometimes you have to go backwards to com forwards.

Agger coming in for Hyypia is unavoidable, as his age is starting to show and it would have been easier had Agger not got injured.

Settling on a a left winger I agree is a problem, but like I said Gonzalez might just be getting his chance in that role now, but this problem has been around since last season so it's not new, also don't forget the injury to Kewell.

We had to give Pennant the chance on the right to see if he would step up

Second striker isn't necessarily that important as it's good to have 3 strikers to switch between. but the settled two look to be Kuyt and Bellamy.

So I don't see a lot of places 'up for grabs' there, just 4 positions unfortunately needing resolving at the same time.

obligatory smart arse smiley

Agger fair do's. He was seriously beginning to make the cb place his own.

Pennants inability to step up should have been predicted. A horrendous error at a price that didn't reflect how much of a gamble the lad is, both on and off the pitch.

If Gonzales was going to be the choice, then he should have just played him. It seems odd not to trust him in little games and then throw him in against Man U away. The only way he'll get acclimatised if he's good enough is to play him, but he has seemed hugely reluctant to. I don't think theres any evidence to suggest that Gonzo is Rafa's choice on the left yet.

Also, if I'm meant to be waiting on Harry coming to save us then God help us.

I disagree on the strikers. I still don't have a clue who is playing up front from game to game, especially as he will often throw Garcia into the mix as well. I think you're surmising who the preferred two is, but they don't play week in week out as you're suggesting.

[The Glove]

fair point but that was true of blackburn too in the first half in particular. the question is, why is there no determination from the players. why isn't rafa able to get their heads right? why do they seem so demotivated and not seeming to give a toss?

I honestly dont know mate but I dont think Rafa coming out in public and saying we are **** (like some people want) would help. Maybe they need a rest. Maybe they should **** off somewhere for a weeks bonding. Maybe he should play a full first team in the Carling Cup with the hope of an easy victory to get some confidence back. Maybe he needs to be tougher on a few players. Maybe even bring a few young lads up to the bench to try and frighten some of the players coasting along thinking theyre great (Im looking at you Pennant/Zenden.)

I know we have been balls away from home but the goals we have conceded havent really been through bad decisions by Rafa have they? Stupid mistakes and moments of brilliance have cost us. Not bad tactics.