My match thoughts....

[CharlieMansonsSquint]

To put it simply; that was pretty much our best starting 11 playing yesterday. I'd have Agger in instead of Hyypia, but apart from that, that was our best 11 IMO.

You'll also notice that of all the summer signings apart from Kuyt didn't start, we looked much more fluid, especially going forward.

Will Rafa play the same team against Reading next weekend?, He should but I suspect he won't.

[Morph]

To put it simply; that was pretty much our best starting 11 playing yesterday. I'd have Agger in instead of Hyypia, but apart from that, that was our best 11 IMO.

You'll also notice that of all the summer signings apart from Kuyt didn't start, we looked much more fluid, especially going forward.

Will Rafa play the same team against Reading next weekend?, He should but I suspect he won't.

I think we might well see the same team, the only change I could really see barring injuries would be Bellamy coming in . However if fit I expect the likes of him Pennant and Gonzalez to start on Tuesday.

[Howard_lfc]

Let's not take the victory for granted against Bordo lads - this is a hugely important game: if we win and Gala fail to win at PSV then we're through to the next stage of the CL - with two games to spare. This will allow Rafa to 'rotate' again - keeping players fresh(er) for the league games - where we have to play catch up.

[lfc4ever]

Let's not take the victory for granted against Bordo lads - this is a hugely important game: if we win and Gala fail to win at PSV then we're through to the next stage of the CL - with two games to spare. This will allow Rafa to 'rotate' again - keeping players fresh(er) for the league games - where we have to play catch up.

But finishing top of the group is important too, so that has to be wrapped up first.

[Red_Polo]

I still think Pennant has what it takes to be a decent option for us on the right. He frustrated the ****ing **** out of me until very recently but he seems to have shaken off the nerves and I think he'll start to perform to a good level from now on.

[WILF]

I still think Pennant has what it takes to be a decent option for us on the right. He frustrated the ****ing **** out of me until very recently but he seems to have shaken off the nerves and I think he'll start to perform to a good level from now on.

Do you think part of his nervousness is being surrounded by much higher quality players than before?
He seemed to have a better game in the CC,when we rested a few players

[friedk]

That to me is our best 11 by some distance. The best part about watching that match was how the players understood each others movement. If you look at the area covered Garcia and Gerrard, only an idiot journalist could refer to them as left and right wingers. Going forward we were playing more 2-4-4 then anything else. It really was a joy to watch, it was flowing, attractive football, as good to watch as any side in Europe at the moment. It was also the second match in a row that we've played like that.

Agger is an exceptional talent, but it will take him a while to gain the understanding with the back four that Sami has, and that's why I don't feel he is ready to replace him just yet. Hyppia is one of the best defenders I have ever seen, what he has always lacked in pace, he makes up for with his anticipation. It's his reading of the game which has always been his greatest strength and it gives confidence to the players around him. Bobby Moore was slow, but nobody noticed because whenever you had the ball near him, he was waiting for you. Sami isn't ready to move just yet.

Gerrard playing in the middle will not have the same freedom as when he starts on the right. In a 4-4-2 formation you cannot play in a free role in central midfield, because it can often leave the other CM outnumbered 3 to 1. If we were playing 3-5-2 or 4-5-1 he could easily play in front of Alonso and Momo, but not in our current formation. When we went on our first run last season, it was because Momo came into midfield and Stevie moved to the right. I don't know the stats, but he said he played more than 75% of his games there last season, which was also the season he was voted player of the year.

Up front Kuyt and Crouch look great together, I can't see a better combination. If you then have the intelligence of Fowler and the pace of Bellamy on the bench, you have many possibilities.

We've had a **** start to the season, but we were a good side before the summer and with Kuyt alone, we are better this time around. When we went on our first run last time we had a front 4 of Crouch (who couldn't score), Cisse, Mellor and Pongolle. Just wait until Stevie starts scoring again.