Hypothetical question....

[Red Chilli]

I don't think 4-4-2 suits Gerrard. He needs a Didi or a Momo behind him doing the donkey work. The same applies when he plays for England, he just doesn't have the same impact when he has 1 eye on defending.

I think rafa would have gone for that as his default system had we got alves. As an alternative I'd like to see Micah Richards.

[paulcooper4]

Alonso is terrific at what he does. I wonder if what he does is actually suited to how we play though.

As for Cahill, he pops up with quite a good amount of goals, in between the running

Xabi isnt suited to how we play, its xabi that MAKES us play.

yes, cahill runs and scores, so did platt, so does lampard. I want more from a player.

[Craig_H]

Xabi isnt suited to how we play, its xabi that MAKES us play.

yes, cahill runs and scores, so did platt, so does lampard. I want more from a player.

I know what you're saying, and Xabi's retention of possession shouldnt be underestimated.

I just see him as not being enough of a defensive midfielder ala Momo, and not offering enough 'output' as an attacking midfielder.

Ideally, he'd play with 2 CMs alongside him...which of course brings us back to the formation/system issue.

[paulcooper4]

I know what you're saying, and Xabi's retention of possession shouldnt be underestimated.

I just see him as not being enough of a defensive midfielder ala Momo, and not offering enough 'output' as an attacking midfielder.

Ideally, he'd play with 2 CMs alongside him...which of course brings us back to the formation/system issue.

well we will just have to disagree then. Alonso is ****ing awesome in 4-4-2, 3-5-2 or whatever you want to throw at me. We have had a **** start to the season as a TEAM. Not because of xabi. Watch the fella play, then watch cahill play and then punch yourself in the face several times for making such a bellend of a statement

[Red_Polo]

TBH mate, it took a while after posting it, for me to be in a position to actually compose a post properly, with my own views. Internet usage at work is being clamped down on somewhat, so it makes composing a proper post with any sort of depth or content a bit difficult

So basically you started the thread with what in your view was not a 'proper' post, but then have a go at others for posting to say how rubbish the thread is and rating it 1 star?

A few points:
-Alonso is a terrific tackler, if not an eye-catching one.
-Alonso is always available for a pass. When others around him move well he comes into his own, his quality of passing can put a player through on goal from just over the half-way line.
-Alonso is not your typical EPL player but he has already proved he can be a success in this league.

[Craig_H]

So basically you started the thread with what in your view was not a 'proper' post, but then have a go at others for posting to say how rubbish the thread is and rating it 1 star?

No, i started it with a question and wasnt able to put my own views across fully at that particular time.

[GordonGecko]

Friend of mine is an Everton fan...and he doesn't really like Cahill, thinks he's a bit of a Lampard and doesn't do much but score goals....

He raves about Arteta though

[Craig_H]

well we will just have to disagree then. Alonso is ****ing awesome in 4-4-2, 3-5-2 or whatever you want to throw at me. We have had a **** start to the season as a TEAM. Not because of xabi. Watch the fella play, then watch cahill play and then punch yourself in the face several times for making such a bellend of a statement

I dont put the poor start down to Alonso mate.

I said a few weeks or so back that i was concerned about the way we attack, as we rarely get many in the box and when Kuyt/Bellamy goes wide, that often just leaves the other striker and/or Gerrard as the only options in the centre. Many agreed with me on that thread.

And something which contributes to this problem is that Momo and Alonso dont get into the box and hardly ever offer a goal threat by doing so - unlike players such as Scholes, Cahill and the like.

Whether or not people agreed with the Alonso/Cahill issue, surely the point about people getting forward to offer a threat is a valid one?

[paulcooper4]

I dont put the poor start down to Alonso mate.

I said a few weeks or so back that i was concerned about the way we attack, as we rarely get many in the box and when Kuyt/Bellamy goes wide, that often just leaves the other striker and/or Gerrard as the only options in the centre. Many agreed with me on that thread.

And something which contributes to this problem is that Momo and Alonso dont get into the box and hardly ever offer a goal threat by doing so - unlike players such as Scholes, Cahill and the like.

Whether or not people agreed with the Alonso/Cahill issue, surely the point about people getting forward to offer a threat is a valid one?

Id prefer to keep gerrard as my attacking midfielder to be honest mate rather than buy cahill. cahill contributes **** all if hes not scoring, just like lampturd

[Redlife]

It's a bit like asking, "If we sold Xabi for £20m, burnt 3/4 of it, and used the rest to buy fizzy cola bottles, would that be a good idea?"



Cahill?


He's nothing.

[Craig_H]

Id prefer to keep gerrard as my attacking midfielder to be honest mate rather than buy cahill. cahill contributes **** all if hes not scoring, just like lampturd

No one would argue with you on Gerrard mate.

So that leaves us with one other CM (if we're playing 4-4-2)...you'd choose Alonso over Momo then?

[Craig_H]

It's a bit like asking, "If we sold Xabi for £20m, burnt 3/4 of it, and used the rest to buy fizzy cola bottles, would that be a good idea?"



Cahill?


He's nothing.

To say he's 'nothing' is silly.

Even if he does 'just' score goals, that's still 10 or 15 goals from a CM, which is nothing to be sniffed at.

[paulcooper4]

No one would argue with you on Gerrard mate.

So that leaves us with one other CM (if we're playing 4-4-2)...you'd choose Alonso over Momo then?

Myself personally, I would use Gerrard on the right and play momo and xabi in the middle, but thats another debate. IF I was keeping 4 4 2 and youre saying Gerrard HAD to play in the middle then id just do it horses for courses depending on the opposition, Momo, Xabi or Gerrard would be on the bench how and when I saw fit. Alonso would probably start most though, with Gerrad or Momo playing next to him depending on form/opposition.

[Craig_H]

Interesting reply mate, i think purely for the attacking threat, SG HAS to play in the middle most games. Obviously you have games where you change things to suit the situation, but without Gerrard in the middle, there's very little going forward from Momo or Alonso and that weakens our attacking threat significantly.

[Fiddy]

Hmm there's been some serious backtracking on this thread

Alonso proved last season he was good enough for the EPL, so to say otherwise is rubbish. He, like most of the team this year, is just out of form. On his game, no-one would ever question his place in the middle of our team. The problem as I see it is that Momo has made himself indispensable sooner than anyone (poss including Rafa) thought, which is a problem seeing as Alonso and Stevie our other main CM's, are undroppable. Plus we've had issues on the right, meaning that Stevie is still our best option out there. In an ideal world, as I've said before, we'd play 3-5-2, making the best use of the best players we've got at the moment. Forget the wingers like Gonzo, Pennant, Kewell etc because a) they're either injured or b) not doing the business at the moment, so why keep finding a place for them? This lineup arguably gets all our best players on the field at the same time, in positions where they are best suited.

------------------------------- Reina----------------------------

-----------------Carra---------Agger-------Sami


Finnan-----------Momo---------------Xabi-----------------JAR

-------------------------------Stevie----------------------------

-------------------Kuyt---------------Crouch/Bellamy/God

This also gives us options for playing Garcia where he can do damage, either in the Stevie position or up front but in a more withdrawn role