Atletico Madrid vs Liverpool - Champions League Last 16 (1st Leg)

[Havors]

Atrocious refereeing & Horrible cheating by AM coupled with piss poor crossing and lack of attempts on target. Frustrating as **** but we shouldnt be too annoyed, we really can turn them over at anfield as long as we get a better ref as they will cheat cheat cheat again.

[Norbs]

Terrible refereeing from minute one but it won't matter because we'll do then cunts back at our place, Simeone won't be cheering then the ****ing clown.

Did you see the state of his ****ing hair? He looks like David Guest

[badpiggy]

There's a serious need to bring in retrospective punishments for simulation. Also I can't understand how at referees' conference or meetings or ****in whatsapp groups that teams like AM aren't brought up and refs discuss how to deal with the likes of Costa. Use VAR on that cunt ffs. Stop play, check to see if he's dived and ****in book him. Book him for when he stood in front of a free in the last couple of minutes and kicked the ball back a metre or two.

[Shaggy]

Look at them. 2nd leg can't come quick enough.

[ame]https://twitter.com/ElGolazoDeGol/status/1230103331642716160[/ame]

[Sus]

Let them have it. They've had a tough season and got a great result against the European and soon-to-be English champions

They've got a hell of a game to get through in 3 seeks, and if they do it, fair play.

I don't think they will, though

[baitman]

There's a serious need to bring in retrospective punishments for simulation. Also I can't understand how at referees' conference or meetings or ****in whatsapp groups that teams like AM aren't brought up and refs discuss how to deal with the likes of Costa. Use VAR on that cunt ffs. Stop play, check to see if he's dived and ****in book him. Book him for when he stood in front of a free in the last couple of minutes and kicked the ball back a metre or two.

Where do i sign up for this.

[Lecter]

They scabbed a goal, they didn't plan it. They started like a cl level team playing a home leg of a knock out round game. The idea that it was a tactical masterstroke is nonsense.

They defended well but as much as they did that we were as much the architects of our own downfall and that's before you even discuss the huge slice of luck in their ricocheted goal

Sometimes we become a little too intricate at times against teams that sit deep. Dont know whether it's a bit of complacency or arrogance but we seem to try and play as though we are Man City which we are not. We try these intricate passing moves in really tight spaces, that for me is not us at our best. We can occasionally play the intricate football but it's really when the whole of our game is flowing. Our best attacking play comes from fast transitions and moving the ball quickly through the space frequently switching the play with raking balls or running at defenders from the outside in. This type of languid intricate play also happened a lot v Norwich and its noticeable our goal came from a long pass that got Mane into a dangerous area in that game

In previous seasons Wijnaldum has gone missing in quite a few matches, been almost anonymous in terms of tackling, passing. This year he hasnt done that much but I thought he was a little off the pace last night it happens so that's no massive worry

Thats the first time I have seen someone deal well with Van Dijk both when he was defensively heading the ball and in their box. When he was defending they frequently got a man in front and a man behind and almost sandwiched him and this I thought made him struggle a bit with his clearing headers as he seemed unable to get as much height on his jumps. In their box they had 3 or 4 men on him in tight games sometimes set pieces are the difference and this for me is one minor criticism that can be levelled at Gomez. When he plays alongside Van Dijk he rarely goes up for corners or free kicks. Sometimes in certain games you need a foil for Van Dijk in the opposition box. Someone like Matip and Lovren do go up for set pieces and they can be a distraction for Van Dijk as they occupy defenders or alternatively they themselves can be a threat. For me sometimes when its tight you might need that different threat rather than just relying on Van Dijk. Also Matip and Lovren are better on the ball than Gomez and will bring the ball forward and pass forward with more conviction. That's not to say I dont prefer Gomez at centreback but there is a little trade off. Hes the better defender by a long way for me but Lovren and Matip are better at other things (at this moment)

Trents crossing was off, his delivery from corners was shocking and why oh why we persisted in taking short corner after short corner that just played into their hands for me. We did play a couple of real dangerous crosses into great areas and it clearly troubled them but we didnt manage to get anyone attacking them probably because the forwards had dropped off to build up some intricate play before the cross

It will be a tough game again if Atletico play like that and we don't play up a few gears in terms of tempo, pace and passing. I would guess we might start Keita or Ox to run at them a bit more from midfield. They are beatable but we need to play to our strengths and not get suckered into a game that suits them

[Lecter]

Deleted as duplicate post

[badpiggy]

Look at them. 2nd leg can't come quick enough.

https://twitter.com/ElGolazoDeGol/st...03331642716160

That's like something out of Eurotrash ffs and where's Costa? How's that cunt getting away from this? Probably out in the car park on crutches at a fixed dogfight claiming his competing honey badger is actually a beloved family mongrel forced into this to pay for a blind nephew's experimental surgery

[Assassin]

They defended well but as much as they did that we were as much the architects of our own downfall and that's before you even discuss the huge slice of luck in their ricocheted goal

Sometimes we become a little too intricate at times against teams that sit deep. Dont know whether it's a bit of complacency or arrogance but we seem to try and play as though we are Man City which we are not. We try these intricate passing moves in really tight spaces, that for me is not us at our best. We can occasionally play the intricate football but it's really when the whole of our game is flowing. Our best attacking play comes from fast transitions and moving the ball quickly through the space frequently switching the play with raking balls or running at defenders from the outside in. This type of languid intricate play also happened a lot v Norwich and its noticeable our goal came from a long pass that got Mane into a dangerous area in that game

In previous seasons Wijnaldum has gone missing in quite a few matches, been almost anonymous in terms of tackling, passing. This year he hasnt done that much but I thought he was a little off the pace last night it happens so that's no massive worry

Thats the first time I have seen someone deal well with Van Dijk both when he was defensively heading the ball and in their box. When he was defending they frequently got a man in front and a man behind and almost sandwiched him and this I thought made him struggle a bit with his clearing headers as he seemed unable to get as much height on his jumps. In their box they had 3 or 4 men on him in tight games sometimes set pieces are the difference and this for me is one minor criticism that can be levelled at Gomez. When he plays alongside Van Dijk he rarely goes up for corners or free kicks. Sometimes in certain games you need a foil for Van Dijk in the opposition box. Someone like Matip and Lovren do go up for set pieces and they can be a distraction for Van Dijk as they occupy defenders or alternatively they themselves can be a threat. For me sometimes when its tight you might need that different threat rather than just relying on Van Dijk. Also Matip and Lovren are better on the ball than Gonez and will bring the ball forward and pass forward with more conviction. That's not to say I dont prefer Gomez at centreback but there is a little trade off. Hes the better defender by a long way for me but Lovren and Matip are better at other things (at this moment)

Trents crossing was off, his delivery from corners was shocking and why oh why we persisted in taking short corner after short corner that just played into their hands for me. We did play a couple of real dangerous crosses into great areas and it clearly troubled them but we didnt manage to get anyone attacking them probably because the forwards had dropped off to build up some intricate play before the cross

It will be a tough game again if Atletico play like that and we don't play up a few gears in terms of tempo, pace and passing. I would guess we might start Keita or Ox to run at them a bit more from midfield. They are beatable but we need to play to our strengths and not get suckered into a game that suits them

We turned and passed back too many times, instead of being more offensive. Each time we did this it gave them enough time get their rigid 4 4 2 behind the ball and stifle us. A step forward rather than a step back and it would have been a different game

[Irishnev]

They should have Gimenez, Costa and Felix back for the next leg so that makes them more dangerous up front whilst adding their best defender. A strong ref is paramount so he doesn’t fall for their antics. They are defending a lead now and will be at their most horrible in a few weeks

[Peter_Griffin]

They should have Gimenez, Costa and Felix back for the next leg so that makes them more dangerous up front whilst adding their best defender. A strong ref is paramount so he doesn’t fall for their antics. They are defending a lead now and will be at their most horrible in a few weeks

As will we

[Norbs]

We turned and passed back too many times, instead of being more offensive. Each time we did this it gave them enough time get their rigid 4 4 2 behind the ball and stifle us. A step forward rather than a step back and it would have been a different game

I think their depth lead to our having to pass backwards. We should've lost the ball to them and forced them to win a couple more corners as breaking right from the back was the only possible way to go over the top of them

[BG1973]

We turned and passed back too many times, instead of being more offensive. Each time we did this it gave them enough time get their rigid 4 4 2 behind the ball and stifle us. A step forward rather than a step back and it would have been a different game

I thought we were fine and didn't do anything differently to what we've done all season. They are just better defensively than what we face in the PL. I like that we are patient and not forcing it.

But this is the type of game that takes me back to personnel questions, i.e perhaps we would be more effective in these games with a David silva type player squeezed in somewhere.

[Norbs]

Yep. Confidence is one thing but it's our calmness that will unnerve them even more