Euro League Semi Finals vs. Villarreal

[Mike]

They have that fella Bakambu playing for them whomever he is, apparently having a very good season.

Going to be a toughie. Watched Bakambu every week when he was at Bursaspor and Sochaux, remarkable player, he'll be tough to stop.

Yez do know now that the cunt is going to score against us!

[Doc_Piptorious]

Lucas back at least covers for Can's absence and is more specialised. I do think Can's absence gives a deserved chance to Joe Allen. Sturridge will be fitter by then too, which can only be a good thing.

Still wanna see us play 2 up top though

He is a player I really like, but seems to give away a freekick in a dangerous position in nearly every game he plays, or at least it feels like he does.

Last night I am pretty sure he gave away the free kick in stoppage time that resulted in them coming close.

Can out is a big blow if it happens and I hope that he turns out to be less bad than it looks at present. Would be much happier having Can and Allen as part of the midfield set up than any other pairing/trio we can put together without them.

[BigChief]

He is a player I really like, but seems to give away a freekick in a dangerous position in nearly every game he plays, or at least it feels like he does.

Last night I am pretty sure he gave away the free kick in stoppage time that resulted in them coming close.

Can out is a big blow if it happens and I hope that he turns out to be less bad than it looks at present. Would be much happier having Can and Allen as part of the midfield set up than any other pairing/trio we can put together without them.

That's a good point. Gave away the freekick against West Ham in the last minute and I was cursing him last night, thought Gundogan was going to score for sure. Hope he cuts it out for the rest of the season. Good reading of a game though so hopefully Origi/Sturridge can kill games sooner before Lucas can make any last minute faux pas.

[Harv]

The Yellow Submarine is coming back in Liverpool

[Doc_Piptorious]

That's a good point. Gave away the freekick against West Ham in the last minute and I was cursing him last night, thought Gundogan was going to score for sure. Hope he cuts it out for the rest of the season. Good reading of a game though so hopefully Origi/Sturridge can kill games sooner before Lucas can make any last minute faux pas.

Yeah if the rest of the team can put away their chances then Lucas will excel at mopping up the danger in the centre, but it is in tight games when we are under the cosh that he worries me a tad. Especially when I see him chasing back towards our goal behind a quicker player.


He also lacks the bit of beef that Can brings and Can is quicker also. Then again Lucas reads the game well as you said and has a ton of experience.

One thing I am fairly sure of is that, if played, Lucas would need at least one midfield partner that does not roam away from the centre too often a la what Milner did to Can last night. I think if Lucas had been playing instead of Can from the start last night that Milner's roaming would have seen Lucas badly exposed for pace and power. Can looked a bit ragged at times last night when he got left one on two and one on three a few times but he was able to fight his corner thanks in no small part to his physical qualities.



Course part of what I am thinking could be down to me being more familiar with the strengths and weaknesses of our players than I am with those of Villarreal. Would only really see them if I caught a La Liga game against one of the big Spanish clubs on tv or the odd game in Europe if there was no other match on so my take on them is based more on what I have seen them do as a unit rather than knowing much about many of their players.

I think the ones that stood out the most for me anytime I watched them were guys like Dennis Suarez, Bruno, and Musacchio.

And if I am to be brutally honest the main reason that I kept an eye out for Musacchio was because he was a good buy in the last two or three Fifa games and I wanted to see if he played as well in real life

[Jaymo]

That's a good point. Gave away the freekick against West Ham in the last minute and I was cursing him last night, thought Gundogan was going to score for sure. Hope he cuts it out for the rest of the season. Good reading of a game though so hopefully Origi/Sturridge can kill games sooner before Lucas can make any last minute faux pas.

Lucas will never cut that trait out, he's been doing it for years

[ChesterDave]

I didn't fancy a 2500 mile trip to a semi-war zone so glad we did not get Shaktar. Would prefer 2 chances against Villarael rather than a one-off. Would prefer to be at home in second leg.

Chuffed with the draw.

Need to win a few hundred this week and convince my boss to apply for away tickets on his season ticket. Virtual guaranteed no with only home matches but would love a Euro away day

[Fosterbloke]

On paper, our squad look perfect to play Spanish opposition, Moreno, Sakho, Lucas and Allen especially.

I think this will suit Allen the most, in fact if he does leave, Spain would be perfect for his skills.

[redmike65]

If Allen wasn't Welsh he'd be Catalan. Facht!

[Ams12]

My mate just confirmed tickets for us at Anfield...i will be there

[Leyton388]

Nice one.

I had some bluenose today in work going on about the Villareal game.

"They're gonna smash you lot won't be surprised if you get done good and proper"

My reply

"Oh is Collina the ref"

The silence was golden

[Gray]

Ive booked my flights to Basel. Fingers crossed Villarreal aren't there.

[RoadEnd]

Ive booked my flights to Basel. Fingers crossed Villarreal aren't there.

I booked flights to Zurich just after the Manure first leg. My sister lives nearby so will stay with her anyway if....

£65 return with easyjet.