Perspective

[Shaggy]

The bedrock of our team is Alisson-Virg-Fab-Hendo. It's been ripped out. No great surprise we're struggling to me

They're all 6ft+ too. I remember seeing the team over the last couple of seasons lining up in the tunnel and looking physically imposing. We've lost all that now, as well as - obviously - their quality.

[Exiled_red]

We are all too quick to jump on the negatives of our performances but where we are in the table with the player we have out is remarkable, a few years ago our strongest team was at this kind of level last night we had more than half the team missing or playing in their incorrect positions.

But you learn more about the team and players when times are hard than when they are good... I think that the defence and GK backups aren't too much of an issue, we have coped remarkably well if you had told us that we'd have played half the season with Henderson, Phillips or Williams at CB I don't think you would have expected us to be where we are. The issues for me are further forward, with Mane out last night (and Jota out for ages) Salah is our only goal threat, and that is a problem, Jota was a great signing and I believe if he had been fit for the last 6 weeks or so we'd be in a much better position, still in the title race. Similarly as good as our midfield appears, without Henderson they are aimless and without that drive that won us the league and the CL, we need to get players to step up or we have to look at moving people on. I think in this tough time we are learning which players we can and can't rely on and I think there are some decisions to be made in the summer...

[Angryred]

We are all too quick to jump on the negatives of our performances but where we are in the table with the player we have out is remarkable, a few years ago our strongest team was at this kind of level last night we had more than half the team missing or playing in their incorrect positions.

But you learn more about the team and players when times are hard than when they are good... I think that the defence and GK backups aren't too much of an issue, we have coped remarkably well if you had told us that we'd have played half the season with Henderson, Phillips or Williams at CB I don't think you would have expected us to be where we are. The issues for me are further forward, with Mane out last night (and Jota out for ages) Salah is our only goal threat, and that is a problem, Jota was a great signing and I believe if he had been fit for the last 6 weeks or so we'd be in a much better position, still in the title race. Similarly as good as our midfield appears, without Henderson they are aimless and without that drive that won us the league and the CL, we need to get players to step up or we have to look at moving people on. I think in this tough time we are learning which players we can and can't rely on and I think there are some decisions to be made in the summer...

All the above in a nutshell for me!...good post, mate!

[Doc_Piptorious]

We are all too quick to jump on the negatives of our performances but where we are in the table with the player we have out is remarkable, a few years ago our strongest team was at this kind of level last night we had more than half the team missing or playing in their incorrect positions.

But you learn more about the team and players when times are hard than when they are good... I think that the defence and GK backups aren't too much of an issue, we have coped remarkably well if you had told us that we'd have played half the season with Henderson, Phillips or Williams at CB I don't think you would have expected us to be where we are. The issues for me are further forward, with Mane out last night (and Jota out for ages) Salah is our only goal threat, and that is a problem, Jota was a great signing and I believe if he had been fit for the last 6 weeks or so we'd be in a much better position, still in the title race. Similarly as good as our midfield appears, without Henderson they are aimless and without that drive that won us the league and the CL, we need to get players to step up or we have to look at moving people on. I think in this tough time we are learning which players we can and can't rely on and I think there are some decisions to be made in the summer...

Spot on. It does show how high our standards have become that we are seeing this season as a bit of a damp squip whereas the truth is that we have performed to a similar level so far this season to all the other top four chasing teams (save for City).


Agree big time with the highlighted bit too. Think this is the area of the pitch that we are underperforming the most in. I am very much of the thinking now that we have some CB cover brought in that we need both Henderson and Fabimho back in the centre as much as possible and gamble that the massive improvement those two would bring to the centre over a prolonged run of games would more than counter the settling in period the CB pairing would have. If nothing else it would mean having the best available players starting in their natural/best positions.

[greenturnip]

The fact that our first choice midfielders have been playing in defence also means we haven't been able to rotate as much as we would like in this busy period. Gini and Millie look knackered, possibly Thiago is too. Klopp doesn't fancy Curt or Ox as much, it seems....and Naby is usually not fit, sadly. We've been screwed by injuries in the busiest season ever.

[frank the tank]

i agree completely with the OP.

Has it been a bad season? Yes.

Could we have played better? No ****in doubt.

And to be honest, I am pissed off with the back up players. They've not ****in helped the team. Their job is to be ready to help when needed. But the likes of Shaqiri, Oxlade, Minamino and Origi (especially Origi......christ) have done two thirds of **** all to help the team.

But to the people saying that the fact we can't break teams down who park the bus isn't due to injuries. Have a ****in day off. For me, if we had a fully fit team last night, we'd have Virgil and Joe camped on the halfway line, we'd have had Hendo and Thiago keeping it moving about 40 yards from goal, and we'd have had Jota joined in with the front 3 - possibly Firmino deep - all providing runs. And any break from Brighton would be quickly cleaned up and recycled by our defense. It would have been relentless.

Also, yes on paper we still have the players that should have beaten Brighton, but our players are burnt out because they've not been able to have a rest. The top ones who aren't injured are fla-ed out. The likes of Mo, Gini, Hendo......they're running on empty ffs and Jurgen hasn't been able to manage their condition because of all of the injuries.

However, couple of points:
- I've never seen a team have to contend with so many injuries for such a prolonged period of time. The fact that we are still in the running for top 4 is pretty good. Look at all of the other teams around us, they've not had a fraction of the injury problems we have had. Pick any team in the ****in world - take out their first 3 center backs for essentially the season - and imagine how they'd have got on.
- Guess what - we are still in this years Champions League. Lets see if we can get a few players back - and maybe defenders up to speed - and see where it takes us.
- Also, I think this season will become one where we just want it to end soon enough. But **** me this experience will surely drive our team of ****in CHAMPIONS to coming back next year again.

[wiw]

They're all 6ft+ too. I remember seeing the team over the last couple of seasons lining up in the tunnel and looking physically imposing. We've lost all that now, as well as - obviously - their quality.

Definitely. Got very accustomed to watching us dominate in the air and mop up the second ball. It's painful watching us in this sense lately. We are all over the place

[spud_gun]

Bit harsh on Shaq. I thought he has done pretty well since he came into the first XI

Unfortunately Ox appears to be finished as a result of that horrific injury against Roma and the other in jury he picked up last year.

Minamino and Origi are the biggest disappointments but in fairness neither have had a consistent run of 5 / 10 games. It can't help any player constantly being picked, dropped then making a sub appearance in the 89th minute.

[Maxiedge]

Was just thinking, last nights performance seemed familiar. Yes ladies and gentlemen, we played like that against Watford away, before the pandemic and lost 3-0. We were slow, sloppy and there were no positives really.

So what is my point? My point is that this has been creeping in since we were pretty much nailed on to win the league. The top performances have been few and far between and we can’t build any sort of momentum. It seems like we have just taken a step back from the intensity of the last 3 years. Add the injuries on top and things have not fallen into place at all this season. Let’s get through it and go again.

[Shaggy]

Yep, it's been 11 months now.

[spud_gun]

Was just thinking, last nights performance seemed familiar. Yes ladies and gentlemen, we played like that against Watford away, before the pandemic and lost 3-0. We were slow, sloppy and there were no positives really.

So what is my point? My point is that this has been creeping in since we were pretty much nailed on to win the league. The top performances have been few and far between and we can’t build any sort of momentum. It seems like we have just taken a step back from the intensity of the last 3 years. Add the injuries on top and things have not fallen into place at all this season. Let’s get through it and go again.

but that's not the case.

We started this season well. Beat Arsenal and Chelsea in successive games. After the Chelsea game we were 9 points from 9. Thiago had came in and for 45 minutes looked to have made the best team in the country even better. Souness was already proclaiming us Champions on Sky Sports

After that the injuries started. Alisson out for the Villa game and we conceded 7. Next game was the Everton game where we lost Virgil and Thiago and the injuries just kept coming.

I'd contend that up to and including the Crystal Palace 7-0 game we were in good shape. The wheels came off over the Christmas period when, as many others have pointed out, the injuries and constant disruption to our starting XI finally caught up with us.

I think it's an anathema to suggest that our poor form harks back to last season.

[Maxiedge]

Go back through the results mate. For every Arsenal/Chelsea win there is a draw to Fulham/Brighton. We have not been able to hit a consistent run of form for a while. We were being proclaimed champions more due to the fact the other teams around us weren’t playing well. That has now changed.

[frank the tank]

but that's not the case.

We started this season well. Beat Arsenal and Chelsea in successive games. After the Chelsea game we were 9 points from 9. Thiago had came in and for 45 minutes looked to have made the best team in the country even better. Souness was already proclaiming us Champions on Sky Sports

After that the injuries started. Alisson out for the Villa game and we conceded 7. Next game was the Everton game where we lost Virgil and Thiago and the injuries just kept coming.

I'd contend that up to and including the Crystal Palace 7-0 game we were in good shape. The wheels came off over the Christmas period when, as many others have pointed out, the injuries and constant disruption to our starting XI finally caught up with us.

I think it's an anathema to suggest that our poor form harks back to last season.

[Kenneth]

Some rose tinted glasses there. As if Ali being out was why we shipped 7 to villa. They tore us to shreds on the break all game and could have had a couple more. We scraped past Leeds while conceding 3 at home, and then scored our goals against chelsea against 10 men. Of those 4 games (up to and including Everton), the Arsenal performance was the stand out.

[Shaggy]

The level - certainly of consistency - dropped off. I think United were a fraction behind us in the most league points in the calendar year, whereas we'd been way clear before. They didn't improve all that much, we came back to the pack. I mean it's inevitable in a way, we started last season P27 W26, which still blows my mind and still doesn't get enough credit. That form is unsustainable, so a drop off was expected. I just didn't expect us to fall of a cliff.