Oldham post match

[Vermilion]

I think Rodgers shouldn't have to shoulder the majority of the blame for yesterday's result. Yes, ultimately the buck (geddit!) stops with Rodgers, but the team he picked should have had more than enough to see Oldham off. He quite clearly wanted a mobile, industrious, fluid front line to get amongst a rigid Oldham defence to put the tie to bed early, then start resting our superstars.

As Dom has pointed out, the defence was a little inexperienced and it cost us. Combined with an early goal, buoyed by the atmosphere, the game fell away from us.

It's the players that have to take responsibility for some gutless displays, not berating the manager with the benefit of hindsight.

Are we to give the players the majority of the credit for the good displays then instead of the manager?

I don't see anything wrong with critcising a manager for the odd mistake or misjudgement, so long as it doesn't descend into insulting him.

[samcharles]

I don't really get that way of thinking tbh, are we to give the players the majority of the credit for the good displays then ?

I don't see anything wrong with critcising a manager, so long as it doesn't descend into insulting him.

Robinson telling Suarez to **** off after he ****ed up with a stupid miscued shot - idiot - he's not ready yet contrary to what he thinks of himself.-

its more than that, robinson wants to do well at that club, thats not in question but you do not turn around and when your the player in the wrong and give the best player of the team a going over!!! if i was rodgers id make jack an example and tell him off big time, these young players think they have made it, they have not made ****e, most are over rated and most have much to do, some need to wake up and smell the coffee,, like the manager said today - otherwise you will be playing in the lower leagues..

[baitman]

what a piss poor effort from our team. total lack of fight and balls.

we need some beef

the midfield was missing, didnt close down the other team, wimped out, not enough brawn. the whole tika taka thing has gone out of the window as soon as another team doesnt sit back and allow us to play. without a couple of strong quick lads in the middle of the pitch we wont go anywhere.
i wont bother listing the players who are not doing themselves credit...

really disappointed with coates. why the manager hasnt insisted he cleaned the bumfluff off his face, he looks like a stoned hippy... i know he hasnt had much chance, but if he cannot see this was his chance and come in and step up then its time to leave. shame, i thought he might have been good.

its clear that we can do ok against the poorest teams, but when a rough bunch of bad boys come and steal our midfields dinner money then we look like wimps.

brendan needs to look further than lads he has known in the past

more beef, better quality.

[Leyton388]

See that block headed goon Smith is on Granada tonight.

[samcharles]

what a piss poor effort from our team. total lack of fight and balls.

we need some beef

the midfield was missing, didnt close down the other team, wimped out, not enough brawn. the whole tika taka thing has gone out of the window as soon as another team doesnt sit back and allow us to play. without a couple of strong quick lads in the middle of the pitch we wont go anywhere.
i wont bother listing the players who are not doing themselves credit...

really disappointed with coates. why the manager hasnt insisted he cleaned the bumfluff off his face, he looks like a stoned hippy... i know he hasnt had much chance, but if he cannot see this was his chance and come in and step up then its time to leave. shame, i thought he might have been good.

its clear that we can do ok against the poorest teams, but when a rough bunch of bad boys come and steal our midfields dinner money then we look like wimps.

brendan needs to look further than lads he has known in the past

more beef, better quality.

i do like the look of this guy - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victor_...respect::rock:

[baitman]

Victor Wanyama

copied the wiki drivel and it posts like a list of smileys

[Fredo]

Thats the only way to explain it. Without fail, Nigey is on here and will not call a spade a spade. Every time, no excuse.

Some of my mates are completely and utterly sure that Rogers is the right man, but several times this season they've admitted that we've been piss poor. Not Nigey, oh no. Its never our fault, its always bad luck or the ref. Nevermind its Oldham, 19th in League One..., no, the ref did for us

Where did I say we played great yesterday?

Instead of panicking like silly kids each time we lose, I always try to look at the bigger picture.

[Muddled]

Are we to give the players the majority of the credit for the good displays then instead of the manager?

I don't see anything wrong with critcising a manager for the odd mistake or misjudgement, so long as it doesn't descend into insulting him.

Yup, that's why we eulogise over player performances after a convincing victory. We were falling over ourselves to cram three players into Morse's MOTM thread after Norwich and just doffing a cap in the direction of Rodgers.

I don't see anything wrong with criticising a manager neither, but sometimes bashing his player selection *after* a defeat, is great with hindsight. I can only think of Dom who voiced concerns over the defence pre-match, the rest - including me - were happy with the team.

[samcharles]

Victor Wanyama

copied the wiki drivel and it posts like a list of smileys

nothing wrong with wanyama, tell you nothing for nothing he is better in their, in the middle then anything liverpool have, he is to the type of player we are lacking, him and lucus would be great in the middle, and we do lack power in that part of the pitch, lucus only getting back to what he was?

so what in the hell have you got a temper for you little girl?

[Alex]

Wanyama better than Gerrard, Lucas, Allen and Henderson? Erm, nope. Think he is alright but in Scotland anyone can look amazing.

[el matador]

Lec is 100% correct. You have to earn the right to play your game on the pitch.

No one is going to lie down and let us play our pretty triangles. We have to go our there batter teams physically into submission and then outplay them.

As it stands we so the pretty stuff without first doing the dirty work. There are just too many gaping holes in the managers philosophy but to give him credit the Gerrard Lucas axis with Henderson buzzing around seems to work for us.

That's the right blend of technical ability with graft. Its surprising then that we looked to play such an open style against oldham who wanted to battle. You've got to fight fire with fire imo.

[Daniel 7]

Wanyama might actually be one of the few who could adapt and be ok down here. I wouldn't say he would push us back to the elite, but he might be a decent value option while Lucas is off form.

Couldn't see Selldick losing both him and Hooper in one window though

[Liverpel]

Houghton has now popped his head out of the parrot pit.

http://www.independent.ie/sport/soccer/premier-league/liverpool-flops-not-fit-to-wear-the-shirt-says-ray-houghton-3369121.html

RAY HOUGHTON has branded Liverpool's FA Cup fourth-round exit at the hands of Oldham Athletic as "embarrassing" and questioned whether a number of Brendan Rodgers' players are good enough for the club.

The former Ireland midfielder, who won two league titles and two FA Cups at Anfield during a five-year spell from 1987-92, believes that the jury is still out on manager Rodgers, who is enduring a testing first season with the Reds.

Liverpool sit in seventh place in the league ahead of tomorrow night's meeting with sixth-placed Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium.

The FA Cup appeared to be the Antrim man's best hope of a trophy, but he watched his side crash out after a 3-2 defeat to struggling League One outfit Oldham at Boundary Park on Sunday.

"It is a huge defeat and, for a club like Liverpool, it is a bit embarrassing," said Houghton.

"Two things come out of it when you play fringe players. Either they come out and show the manager what they're about, put down a marker to show why they should be in your team; or some of them feel at times, I take it, that it is a slight on their ability – that they are thought of as fringe players, and don't turn up and play the way they can.

"I was involved in a Liverpool team years ago and we went out to Peterborough (in the 1991-92 League Cup), who were in the same division as Oldham are now, and I remember Graeme Souness told us in no uncertain terms that it wasn't good enough, that if you are a Liverpool player you have a certain level that you have got to achieve, and losing to a team that far down the league is not acceptable.

"I hope Brendan has told the players exactly the same. You do get upsets in football, but you have got to be competitive."

Much had been made of Liverpool's lack of depth up front before the arrival of Daniel Sturridge from Chelsea this month.

However, Houghton believes that the side has more issues for Rogers to deal with than just in attack.

"There are a few problems," he said at an ESPN media launch in Dublin. "I have never been overly enamoured with the centre-halves.

DEFICIENCIES

"Martin Skrtel won Player of the Year last year, but I have seen a lot of deficiencies in his game: he is rash, goes into tackles that he shouldn't and he is not as comfortable as Daniel Agger on the ball.

"Liverpool want to play a passing game and you need somebody who can pass the ball.

"Midfield, who are you going to play? Joe Allen? Jonjo Shelvey? Jordan Henderson? They wouldn't be players that you would normally expect Liverpool to have.

"If you are going to be a top team, then you need better than that to compete."

Houghton says that Rodgers deserves time to stamp his authority on Liverpool but, while there have been some elements that the 73-times capped former Ireland midfielder is impressed with, he believes the jury is still out.

"You give the manager 38 games and see what he has done on three things," he explained. "Where has he finished in the league? How has he gone in the cups? And, in particular, how have his signings done?

"Well, at the minute, it looks like some of them have really struggled. Fabio Borini has really struggled; Joe Allen – they were calling him the new Xavi and I don't see where they were coming from with that. When you see Allen, he is in front of the back four passing sideways and backwards, while Xavi is up with the frontmen, where it really matters.

"I think Daniel Sturridge coming in, from what I have seen so far, is a positive move. I didn't think he would be up to speed with Luis Suarez so quickly, but he has done better than I thought. I will reserve judgment over a long time, as he has been to Chelsea and Manchester City and it hasn't worked.

"That is where Brendan will be judged, but it is tough. Manchester City spent a fortune to get up to the top. Liverpool haven't got that luxury – the people who run the club will give him some money but not as much as he might actually need."

[McDermotX]

That's not like Ray Houghton to be slating Liverpool.

Sure even when we were hammering teams back in 08/09, we weren't hammering them enough for Ray.

Ray loves these kinds of results. A bitter, bitter ex-pro.

[Shaggy]

Oldham got tonked again yesterday. 1 point in the last 9 games. Dickov has been given the boot today.